Mental toughness is key to an athlete reaching their potential, but coaches often overlook the importance of it.
In this video, I share 3 effective ways to strengthen your players’ mental toughness:
1. Make It Real
2. Provide Strategies
3. Nudge Them Along
Nicholas Santino is a Senior High-Performance Coach, PhD Candidate, and the official Mental Performance Consultant for Elite Prospects. From his specialized psychology research program, to his PhD studies, Nicholas has gained a tremendous foundation of knowledge and appreciation for the human experience. His passion for psychology has accumulated to a commitment to studying and applying positive psychology and stoicism. This commitment has led Nicholas to conduct many research studies focusing on understanding why and how some people thrive and prosper while others do not. His admiration for evidence-based solutions has propelled Nicholas to produce studies revolving around mindfulness, grit (perseverance and passion), performance, quality participation, social relationships, and well-being.
Nicholas’s devotion to Psychology is equal to his love of sport. Growing up in the Greater Toronto Area, Nicholas played competitive hockey and was greatly influenced by watching his brother excel through Junior A and NCAA hockey. Nicholas is devoted to mobilizing his knowledge of psychology to help athletes and all people live happy and fulfilling lives, reach their utmost potential, and achieve consistent elite performance.
Although Nicholas’ athletic career was hockey based, as a mental performance coach he works with a wide variety of high-level individual sport athletes (skiers, fighters, climbers, kayakers, fencers, & golfers) as well as the traditional team sports like baseball and soccer players.
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A Native of Quebec, Sara was part of the St. Lawrence University Women’s Ice Hockey team that competed in the NCAA Division 1 hockey league ECAC. During this time, Sara helped her team appear in four ECAC Hockey Tournaments and two NCAA Frozen Fours, and was a four-time member of the ECAC Hockey All-Academic Squad. Following her career at St. Lawrence University, Sara played one year of professional hockey with Lugano, where she truly honed her skills in understanding the intricate connection between mindset and performance.
Sara then went on to coach NCAA D1 Hockey for 2 decades, and realized a coaches’ profound influence on both skill development and an athletes’ self-perception. This realization, among her own experiences as a player, prompted her transition from collegiate hockey coaching to joining forces with CEP Mindset.
Sara is a dedicated mental performance coach who plays a significant role in helping athletes transform both on and off the playing surface. With Sara’s support, athletes can work through their mental barriers, unlock their potential, and rediscover the joy and passion for their sport. Drawing from her battles with fear, doubt, and worry throughout her career, Sara’s coaching is infused with genuine passion, love, and care, hoping to ease the path for others. She now understands that pursuing excellence should make you feel your best, not your worst.
In addition to her extensive coaching experience, Sara is a certified sleep science coach through Spencer Institute. This certification enables her to provide specialized guidance on improving sleep quality, further enhancing athletes’ wellness and performance.
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Adam Carter is a High-Performance coach with a Masters of Arts, specializing in Applied Behaviour Analysis. From his research and coursework in psychology and behavior analysis, Adam has gained an invaluable insight into the interaction between the human mind and body. His love for these subjects has led to conducting research on eliminating anxiety-based behaviors in children, presenting at international conferences, and publishing research in the Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis.
Adam’s desire to pursue these research areas and his love for sport has cultivated in his passion to be a mental-performance coach. He grew up in a competitive sports environment, playing sports such as hockey, soccer, football, and tennis, which has given him a rich history in both helping himself and others through mental struggles. His biggest passion as a coach is to help unlock the full potential of an athlete – which is so often hindered by a lack of mental skills. He believes in the devotion to practicing mental skills just as much as one would practice physical skills.
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Blair has over 13 years of experience as a Professional Dancer, Assistant Dance Captain & Cast Manager, as well as an additional 17 years of training. Over the last 3 decades, she has lived and experienced first hand the highest of highs & lowest of lows that come with pursuing a career in the Performing Arts.
As an Mental Performance Coach with CEP Mindset, Blair is able to personally understand the pressure her athletes are dealing with leading into competitions & being judged, the fear that comes with learning new skills & tricks, and the confidence issues associated with physical appearance.
Blair’s mission in connecting with other performing artists is fueled by her passion for dance and helping them see that when you prioritize having a healthy and strong mind over results, you will be able to fully enjoy being an artist & achieving consistent elite performance.
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Dr. Steve LaFay is a practicing chiropractor, teacher, and published author who has studied psychology and human performance for 30 years. He brings a career full of experience helping patients, clients and businesses excel and express their unique potential with an inside – out approach.
Dr. Steve’s love of sports began early playing hockey for St. Andrew’s College before going on to study psychology at the University of Western Ontario where he began coaching minor hockey as a student and continued for many years. He discovered his passion for coaching hockey players in a one on one setting by helping his nephew excel in the OHL/AHL/ECHL and in Europe.
His inspiration to help athletes unleash their inner greatness, live fulfilling lives and love the journey to achieving consistent elite performance is his driving force.
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Natasha Habert draws from her training in sport and performance psychology, personal experiences as a competitive athlete, and deep passion for consistent high performance. She is a lifelong athlete and high performer, excelling in volleyball as both a player and coach.
Natasha was involved in a variety of sports from an early age and fell in love with the competitive nature of each game, the teamwork and collaboration that was imperative for success, and the individual effort and dedication necessary to improve. Her greatest athletic passion was for the game of volleyball, where she played Division II at the University of Colorado Colorado Springs. During this time, Natasha was awarded student-athlete of the year, the RMAC Summit Award (highest overall GPA in final competition), and still holds the career dig record for the university.
Since her volleyball career, Natasha went on to coach at highly competitive club and collegiate levels. Throughout her coaching career, she was able to impact elite athletes as young as 14 to 18 years old, eventually moving up to assisting the Women’s Volleyball team at Florida State University. During this time she was fortunate to have an impact on many athletes through helping them develop various athletic and life skills.
Natasha’s passion for competitive sports and love for psychology have guided her to studying and working in the field of sport psychology. Natasha’s mission is to help athletes and high performers develop the individualized tools and strong mindset that will help set them up for success, reach their full potential, and achieve consistent elite performance while enjoying the journey.
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Luciano’s hockey career is highlighted by his time playing college at the University of Victoria and two professional seasons in Europe. Throughout his career, he struggled with performance anxiety, a lack of consistency, fluctuations in confidence, and being caught in the results trap. This eventually led him to deviate from the main reason why anyone should play sports – for the enjoyment of the game. As a former athlete, Luciano has a unique understanding of the psychological pressures and struggles that athletes experience.
Luciano now strives to integrate his experience as an elite athlete with his education in Counselling and Psychotherapy. He is extremely enthusiastic about the role of athletics in mental health and well-being and believes that performance in sports is inextricably linked with mental strength and resiliency. Luciano’s ultimate aim is to make a meaningful impact on his clients through a personalized coaching approach with evidence-based interventions that are tailored to the athlete’s specific needs and goals.
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Alexis Woloschuk is a name synonymous with mental fortitude in the world of professional hockey. Throughout her career originating playing boys hockey, going to an academy away from home, playing her four years at Boston University and 7+ years in pro hockey she’s learned the importance of resilience, confidence, and dismissing both fear and other’s opinions. With a blend of relatability, confidence, and an acute understanding of playing to one’s potential, Alexis helps athletes reshape the way they perceive and harness the power of their minds.
From a young age Alexis showcased natural talent, but it was soon as a female in hockey that her determination and mental resilience would set her apart. After excelling in youth leagues and representing both Canada and her province, Alexis earned a scholarship to play college hockey at Boston University. On paper she won 3 Hockey East Championships. However most notably, it was during her collegiate years when she dealt with injury, pressure and the uncontrollable she began to delve deeper into the psychological aspects of the game, recognizing the pivotal role mental strength played in achieving success.
Upon graduating with honors at Boston University, Alexis wasted no time in pursuing her dream of playing pro hockey. She has faced ample challenge but through trial and tribulation has learned the skills to remain at the top. While playing pro, she has successfully launched a wellness app called TheLineUp and made a significant impact in communities mentoring athletes and helping them build their mental toolbox. Her approach is refreshingly relatable, often sharing personal anecdotes of overcoming adversity.
Alexis instills a sense of confidence and self-belief, empowering athletes to unlock their full potential. Alexis’ expertise lies in her ability to connect athlete to athlete. While her experience as an athlete lies in hockey, she has worked with athletes in almost all team and individual sports. Her emphasis on embracing individuality and blocking out noise resonates with athletes of all levels. Furthermore, Alexis champions the idea that one’s greatest competition is oneself. By shifting the focus inward and mastering the mental game, athletes can transcend limitations and achieve greatness beyond measure.
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Sean Mahoney is a member of the Association for Applied Sport Psychology (AASP), and a Master’s candidate in the Sport and Performance Psychology program at the University of Denver. For as long as he can remember, Sean has been fascinated by human performance and how to gain an edge over the competition. For most of his athletic career, he focused on the physical aspect of performance but neglected the mental. Because of this, he struggled with performance anxiety, focus issues, and limiting beliefs pertaining to confidence and self-doubt. His lack of focus on optimizing his mental game prevented him from reaching his full potential.
Sean’s sport career began at a young age, but changed course after he suffered serious neck injury just before his senior year of high school. The injury caused him to retire from sport and set him on course for a long journey of injury recovery. This experience led him to realize the importance of the mental aspect of injury recovery, and ultimately the mental aspects of performance in general. Sean‘s unique life experiences have fuelled him with passion and drive to help others think, feel, and perform to the highest range of their capabilities as consistently as possible.
Sean has worked with youth, amateur, and professional athletes from a wide range of sports. Sean has worked with both teams and individuals and has experience working with adaptive sports and athletes with disabilities.
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Savannah Fitzgerald is earning her M.A. in Kinesiology, Sport Psychology Option at California State University, Fresno. Possessing an internal motor that fires her rage for success, Savannah forged this attribute over five years while competing as an NCAA D-I water polo player and swimmer. Combined with her opportunity to represent and compete for the United States, she feels that sport has significantly impacted her professional development. Due to her personal experience playing at all levels, Savannah’s passion for mental performance began when she struggled to overcome pre-competition nerves and post-competition processing. When she discovered a world out there that people were referring to as ‘sport psychology,’ she felt like a piece of her brain was unlocked. Reality shifted as she stumbled into a space consisting of the most beautiful blend of elite performance, mental well-being, and athletics.
Through her current research in confidence, self-efficacy, and mental skills training, her extensive athletic background, overcoming an uncontrollable switch in sport, and her knowledge of the post-collegiate sport identity process, Savannah is genuinely motivated by the notion of helping others consistently optimize their performance. She believes it is her responsibility to hold space for those who need it. Savannah’s goal is to earn her PhD in clinical psychology with a focus in sport psychology. She is dedicated to helping her clients achieve true greatness by breaking through their perceived barriers and embracing their challenges head on.
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Gabe is currently completing his Master’s in Counselling Psychology at the University of Victoria. Although Gabe played several years of high-level baseball, including a stint in the British Columbia Premier Baseball League (BCPBL), he chose hockey as his sport to pursue at the highest level possible. Gabe went on to play four years of junior hockey with the Richmond Sockeyes in the Pacific Junior Hockey League (PJHL) while also coaching minor hockey. Prior to junior hockey, Gabe played 3 years in the Canadian Sport School Hockey League (CSSHL) where he experienced the pressures and expectations of moving on to the next level. During those three years, Gabe constantly compared himself to others and struggled with coping when things did not go his way. Over time, he learned how to focus on his own process and path to the next level, while also developing strategies to improve well-being.
By having experiences as a player and a coach, Gabe has insight on what coaches think and what it’s like to be coached. In addition, Gabe hopes to use his academic knowledge in Psychology and Counselling to help understand each athlete’s unique experience in sport and help them achieve their desired mental performance goals.
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Louie is a mental performance coach from Toronto, Canada with a professional hockey career spanning over 14 years. Being a standout player at the University of Michigan, Louie was a Hobey Baker finalist and a 1st team All-American, which led him to getting drafted by the Ottawa Senators and playing in renowned leagues across the globe, including the DEL, SHL, and AHL.
Louie’s journey to success on the ice was not without its challenges. Throughout his career, he navigated the hurdles of difficult coaches, bad teammates, injuries, and fluctuations in confidence and consistency. These challenges fuelled him to find solutions by working with Dr. Jerry Lynch, a sport psychologist whose philosophies are rooted on texts such as ‘The Art of War’ and ‘Tao Te Ching’. This work resonated deeply with Louie and gave him the best mindset to squeeze the most out of his capabilities and reach elite levels of performance.
Louie’s coaching philosophy revolves around the concept of self-assessment and strategic positioning, leveraging tools such as journaling and visualization to optimize performance outcomes. By equipping athletes with the skills to effectively market themselves as premium products in the competitive landscape of sports, Louie empowers them to transcend limitations and achieve unparalleled success.
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Erin has been a professional track and field athlete since 2016 and had the honour of representing Canada as part of the 2016 Olympic Track & Field Team. Throughout her professional career, Erin struggled mentally to disconnect from results and allow herself to properly rest and recover. This resulted in chronic fatigue, energy deficiency, and anxiety around training and racing. Eager to reignite her passion for elite athletics, Erin decided it was time to work 1-on-1 with a mental performance coach. Since then, Erin has competed for Canada in the 5000m, 1500m and Cross Country, owing her recent success to her ability to cultivate strong mental performance practices.
Now, as a mental performance coach herself, Erin strives to utilize her elite experience and professional knowledge in sport psychology to help athletes optimize their performance and enhance their overall health and lifestyle in and out of sport. Although she specializes in individual and endurance sports, she still loves working with athletes of all sports and competitive backgrounds. Erin firmly believes that the most successful athletes are healthy, happy, and adaptable. She aims to instill this belief in every athlete she works with.
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Mia Landry is a former varsity hockey player at Brock University, where she competed at the USPORT level and was part of the 2021-22 OUA gold medal team. Mia currently represents Canada on the Women’s National Ball Hockey team and is pursuing a Master of Kinesiology Sport Psychology at her alma mater. Her research focuses on areas such as team cohesion, group dynamics, leadership styles, and sports culture.
Beyond her sport and academic careers, Mia has embraced roles as a mentor and coach. As a Hockey Canada’s Creating Coaches program member, she actively contributes to developing hockey athletes within the St. Catharines, Ontario community. Her passion for hockey extends beyond playing, as Mia dedicates herself to coaching and promoting mental performance training.
Mia’s ultimate goal is to empower athletes to excel in their respective sports by enhancing their mental performance capabilities. She is passionate about providing athletes a pathway for overcoming adversity and achieving their goals.
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As a former member of McMaster University’s women’s soccer team, Emilie intimately understands the demands and challenges athletes face on and off the field. Although she encountered many challenges as a high-level athlete, particularly struggling with self-doubt and overthinking, Emilie was able to make a remarkable transformation when she began to embrace the principles of sports psychology.
Through dedicated practice and guidance, Emilie learned to manage her mindset, overcome self-doubt, and channel her focus effectively, ultimately leading to a significant improvement in her game. This pivotal shift not only elevated her performance on the field, but also instilled in her a deep appreciation for the profound impact of mental training on athletic success and enjoyment.
Drawing from her academic and athletic journey, Emilie is driven by a deep passion to optimize athletes’ performance through principles of sport psychology, just as she once did. Her ultimate goal is to empower athletes to consistently unlock their full potential – ensuring they perform at their peak level day in and day out.
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Max is currently attending William James College, where he is earning a Doctorate Degree in Clinical Psychology and a Masters Degree in Professional Psychology. During his time as an undergraduate student, Max was inducted into the International Honor Society in Psychology (Psi Chi), and played on the Quinnipiac University men’s club ice hockey team.
Playing goalie since the age of five, Max has developed an enhanced perception of the stressors and pressures that athletes not only put on themselves, but those placed on them by others. Max has always tried his best to be a leader on and off the ice, which led him to becoming captain of his high school Varsity team his senior year. Playing junior hockey in the EHLP exposed Max to many different experiences in which he had to learn how to manage the pressures and expectations that came along with making it to the next level. His life experiences have inspired Max to pursue a career in Clinical Sports Psychology, as he believes no athlete should ever feel the way he did while trying to make their dreams a reality. Max’s overall goal is to help athletes perform at their fullest potential, enjoy the game they love, and feel good about themselves – not only as an athlete but as a person as well.
Disclaimer: Although Max is currently earning his PsyD in clinical psychology, he does not conduct clinical work within this setting. Instead, he uses his formal education to help expand his understanding and ability to work with athletes.
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James C Nellis is a Licensed Associate Counselor and High-Performance Coach who makes his home in Scottsdale Arizona. James’ expertise is in helping elite athletes, teams, and business professionals increase their performance, improve their understanding and relationship with self, and develop an overall sense of internal congruency and well-being.
James grew up as a highly successful athlete in the sports of hockey, golf, and baseball. Although James played all three sports at the highest levels in Canada, hockey became his main focus, but injuries ended his competitive playing career. James then turned his focus to business and launched a career in the financial services industry. He cofounded Regency Advisory Corporation in 2003, a financial services firm catering to high net worth business owners in Western Canada and sold the business in 2013 after a successful 10 years of serving clients. James’ focus since then has been personal development and working to help others. His ability to honestly self asses, to be open to feedback from others, make sound decisions, listen to an assess the needs of others, and communicate his intentions directly are his greatest strengths. James works with my clients to deliver key strategies and tactics helping them to develop in the areas of self-confidence, communication, process focus and growth mindsets, achieve their personal goals, understanding positive self-talk, develop visualization skills, accountability, and self-efficacy.
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Chris is a Senior High-Performance Coach and has spent the past 30+ years in the game of hockey as a player, Head Coach, General Manager, scout, mentor, consultant and most importantly as a parent. He has done so in the NHL, with Hockey Canada, in the OHL and the OHA, as well as European pro hockey. In addition, he has spent 15+ years as a classroom teacher as well as being in leadership positions as an administrator with a private high school in Toronto. All these experiences have allowed Chris to be able to work with, lead, coach, mentor, advise, and consult with various personalities, ultimately gleaning some championship habits along the way.
Chris has coached over 100 players who have played and/or been drafted into the NHL, and 100+ players who have gone on to play NCAA or USport hockey. His passion for working with athletes and his vast experiences have provided him with countless ‘real life’ examples of what High Performance looks like. He has won multiple championships as a Head Coach and GM, notably winning a Stanley Cup ring from being a member of the scouting staff of the Pittsburgh Penguins from 2012-2016.
Chris is a voracious reader who is often referring to the books he has read to aid those he works with, and is a lifelong student of coaching, leadership, high performance, human nature, and development, as well as anything that involves sports. His personal purpose is to provide athletes, coaches, executives, and organizations with the ability to be high performers and helping them grow into their peak potential.
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