Mental Game Lessons from John Wooden

Basketball Confidence

What’s the most important skills for athletes to possess?

Anthony Robbins sent me an interview he did with the legendary basketball coach John Wooden, who recently passed away at age 99. This was one of the best interviews Wooden gave, according to Robbins.

Today, I want to share with you something that Wooden said that I think is profound…

What’s the most important skills for athletes to possess? According to John Wooden, quickness is one:

“The most important attribute in any sport is quickness. Quickness must be under control. If it isn’t under control, you have a lot of activity without achievement. I don’t want activity without achievement,” said Wooden.

What does quickness have to do with the mental game?

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Summer 2010 Mental Game Coaching Professional Update!

Early registration for the Summer 2010 MGCP
course ends June 18, 2010.

Enroll early and get 10 percent off!
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Wooden went on to stay that athletes must be emotionally and mentally balanced. In order for athletes to harness their physical prowess, such as quickness, they must have balance…

“To have quickness under control, you have to be balanced, emotionally and mentally balanced. To have the physical balance, you have to be mentally balanced… Balance is keeping things in perspective, not letting yourself get too high or not letting yourself get too low,” said Wooden.

I love the idea of teaching athletes to have balance with the mental game. Wooden says athletes can’t get too low or too high emotionally, but I assume it applies to the mental game overall…

For example, one of the topics I discuss with my students in the MGCP course is helping athletes have a balanced level of motivation.

Too little motivation, your athletes won’t reach their goals. Too much motivation (a la perfectionists) your athletes won’t reach their potential. Yes, balance.

If athletes focus on too many performance cues at once, they’re confused. If they focus on too few cues, they get left behind. Balance is the key once again.

How do you help athletes find the right “mental game” balance? You have to find the imbalances, first.

In my work, I find imbalances with an assessment, the AMAP profile, I developed over 20 years of working with athletes and performers.

I teach you a model for coaching athletes in the MGCP program: awareness, education, and application. You must:

  1. Help athletes identify their unique challenges with the mental game
  2. Educate athletes to take control of their mental game
  3. Teach athletes how to apply what they learn to practice and competition

You’ll learn my entire system and get access to my mental game assessments when you join the summer Mental Game Coaching Professional program this summer.

If you have not done so, please complete an application at the MGCP website:

MGCP Application

If you have already submitted your MGCP application, please email me to request the Summer 2010 enrollment forms.

Note: The first five people to lock in their seats will get preference. Early registration ends June 18.

Please call me at 888-742-7225 if you have any questions about
the course.

Sincerely,

Patrick J. Cohn, Ph.D.
Master Mental Game Coach

p.s. Cortez Hankton, a professional football player, had this to say about his experience in the Spring course:

“I wish I would have taken the MGCP course before playing professional football because this would have been a huge asset to my career. The course is detailed and shows step by step how to improve an athlete’s mental ability and performance by identifying underlying issues or problems. The course is well-organized and I feel that I learned a lifetime of information in 20 hours of live coaching with Dr. Cohn!.” ~ Cortez Hankton, Jr.


Boost Your Self-Confidence With Mental Game Coaching!

Master mental game coach, Dr. Patrick Cohn, can help you or your athlete(s), ages 12 and up, overcome mental game issues with personal coaching.

You can work with Dr. Patrick Cohn himself in Orlando, Florida or via Skype, FaceTime, or telephone. Call us toll free at 888-742-7225 or contact us for more information about the different coaching programs we offer!

What are our students saying?

“WOW!!! What a week I had. I was able to perform with a confidence that allowed my style to shine through–no more entering the arena with that “deer in the headlights” look or feeling. I stopped evaluating myself while I was performing, and I actually left the arena after my patterns feeling like I had experienced a lot of fun. Thank you so much.”
~Julia Dreyer, National Champion Equestrian


For All Athletes – Learn Confidence-Boosting Techniques!

D you have a negative self-image of yourself as an athlete that stifles confidence?

No matter ow positive you try to be, are you unable to shake the doubt that rushes into your head when you size up your competition?

Have you labeled yourself as a loser, poor closer, or mediocre athlete and these labels keep you stuck in a rut of self-pity and indecision?

If you’ve answered yes to any of these questions, check out The Confident Athlete!

The Confident Athlete CD and workbook program is a 14-day plan for ultimate self-confidence. This program is ideal for any athlete or coach that wants to discover proven confidence-boosting techniques guaranteed to drastically build self-confidence and improve sports performance.

Learn more about one of our most popular CD programs in The Confident Athlete Series

The Confident Athlete: A 14-Day Plan For Ultimate Self-Confidence

Check out all of the products in The Confident Athlete Series!

What are customers saying?

“I first purchased The Confident Athlete to see how the program went and immediately saw results. I then purchased the rest of the confident athlete series and have noticed a dramatic improvement in my level of play or should I say consistency. I currently play NCAA Division 1 baseball for Lamar University, and even my coaches have noticed a change in the way that I approach the game. My attitude and confidence at the plate.”
~Tylor Prudhomme (Listen to his success story)

“I am a ASP world qualifying professional surfer and after beginning the ‘The Confident Athlete’ I had an almost instant change in attitude about my own surfing ability and my mindset going into competition. By using the Confident Athlete strategies, my confidence has done a complete 180 degrees. I won a local pro/am a few weeks back, and just had my best result of the year in one the last big events on the world circuit this last week in Brazil! It is my secret weapon!”
~Shaun Burrell, Professional Surfer (Listen to his success story)


For Young Athletes and Parents – Learn More About How to Help Kids Improve Confidence Quickly!

We’ve got a great program for you called “The Confident Sports Kid: A 7-Day Plan for Building Ultimate Self-Confidence.”

The Confident Sports Kid is a 7-day program for sports parents and kids to boost young athlete’s performance, happiness and success… in sports and life!

The Confident Sports Kid is two programs in one. There’s a manual and CD for parents/coaches, and a workbook/CD for young athletes.

Packed with mental strategies that you and your kids can start using immediately, this program teaches your athletes how to identify confidence busters, proactively deal with them, manage expectations that undermine confidence, and mentally prepare to stay confident when faced with adversity.

What’s more, our program teaches you, as sports parents and coaches, how you may be hurting your kids’ confidence and gives you instructions for changing your behavior in ways that will improve your athletes’ performance, confidence and enjoyment.

Learn more about one of our most popular CD programs in The Confident Sports Kid Series

The Confident Sports Kid: A 7-Day Plan for Building Ultimate Self-Confidence

Check out all of our products in The Confident Sports Kid Series!

What are parents and coaches saying about our program?

“I appreciate the advice to parents as to how to help your child become more mentally resilient to bullying in sports. The specific advice and scenarios are extremely helpful for any child on a team and very helpful in guiding parents, coaches and administrators in how to deal with bullying in sports. I cannot thank you enough for your input, and I am so reassured to know that there are people like you who are writing articles and doing interviews on such timely and important matters.”
~Julie Goot

“Dr. Patrick Cohn and Lisa Cohn are to be congratulated! Together, they offer a wealth of knowledge, information, and practical mental tools for sports parents on the substantial “mental game” challenges and pressures facing today’s young athletes.”
~Marc D. Anderson, LCSW, MGCP, Mental Game Coach


Athlete's Mental EdgeFor Mental Coaches – Add More Value To Your Mental Training Programs!

This workbook series was designed for coaches and mental coaches to use with their athletes.

The Athlete’s Mental Edge workbooks complement your existing mental training program. Each of the 15 workbooks in the Athlete’s Mental Edge System teaches your athletes a specific mental skill to improve their performance.

For mental coaches, this system is ideal for between session education.

For sports coaches, you’ll be able to conduct 15 team seminars using the workbook system.

In the Athlete’s Mental Edge workbook system, you receive 15 easy-to-read, practical Mental Edge Workbooks on PDF, as well as 16 coaches’ game plan MP3 audio files.

Athlete’s Mental Edge Workbook System

What are coaches saying?

“I am really pleased with the Athlete’s Mental Edge workbooks – they are fitting in really well with my coaching! I find they offer a great framework for doing workshop sessions. I have also used the workbooks with a few individual athletes – for the younger ones (12 and under). They are giving a good structure and framework to our sessions. The workbooks have worked well with all of them!”
~Kerri Morgan, Mental Game Coach

“I am impressed with the willingness and openness of Dr. Cohn to share all of his assets (intellectual, products, etc.) with the MGCP students. You have developed an incredible model/package for mental training. Even though we are paying for your service, you are passing on a legacy built on your contribution to the world of sports. Thank you for that.”
~Tony Melito, MGCP

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