The Sport Psych Show

I’m excited to be speaking with Dr Scott Goldman in this episode. Scott is Director of High Performance Psychology for one of the NFL teams. He provides psychological support and expertise to the team, Head Coach, GM, and Vice President. Scott has served as a clinical and performance psychologist for the University of Michigan, Arizona, and Saint Louis’ Athletic Departments. He is President of the Association for Applied Sport Psychology, a multidisciplinary organisation with over 2,500 members worldwid

I speak with Rob Cooper in this episode. Rob is Head Coach of Penn State University baseball. A former college baseball player himself, Rob went on to complete a psychology degree at the University of Miami where he also played and where began his coaching career. And he has been coaching ever since - he was named Head Coach at Wright State University, Dayton Ohio and was Head Coach at USA Baseball in 2013 where his team won a gold medal in Taiwan.

I’m delighted to speak with professional basketball and global skill coach, Ganon Baker in this episode. Ganon is regarded as one of the premiere basketball skill trainers in the world. He trains players from the NBA though to middle school. His relentless passion, work ethic, and competency for the game has the respect of players and coaches all over the world. Ganon has travelled the globe impacting the game and has worked and shared the court with players such as Lebron James, Chris Paul and Kevin Dura

I have the pleasure of being joined by Stuart Singer in this episode. Stuart is a performance psychologist with a Masters of Education in Counselling and over a decade of experience working to improve individual and group performance. He currently works with the Washington Wizards and the Washington Mystics and serves as the Performance Enhancement Coach for the Connecticut Sun of the WNBA. Stuart has also coached high-school athletes in varsity soccer, basketball, track, and cross-country.

In this episode, I’m joined by Bobby White. As National Performance Manager for England Handball, Bobby is responsible for creating and enhancing handball and personal development opportunities for players. A former player himself, Bobby captained Great Britain’s handball team at the London 2012 Olympics. Bobby holds his UEFA B license and has completed a Sports Science degree. We speak about Bobby’s playing days; what confidence feels like; gamification and self-determination theory.

I’m excited to have John O’Sullivan on this episode. John’s background as an athlete and coach led him to start the Changing the Game project with the mission to put the ‘play’ back into ‘play ball’ by providing parents and coaches with the information and resources they need to make sport a healthy, positive, and rewarding experience for their children. John has also written several books including his latest bestseller Every Moment Matters and it’s this book we mainly speak about during ou

I’m excited to be speaking with Dr Jamie Barker in this episode. Jamie is a senior lecturer in sport psychology at Loughborough University. He has worked in sport psychology for the past 20 years, mostly in elite sport and predominantly in professional cricket and the Paralympics. Jamie also coordinates sport psychology provision across all the FA disability squads. Jamie has co-authored a fascinating research paper that examines the relationship between challenge and threat states and performance.

I’m delighted to be speaking with Paula Reid in this episode. Paula is a trainer, facilitator, coach, author and adventurer. Her adventuring has led her to sail around the world, ski to the South Pole and paddle the Srepok and Mekong rivers. Drawing from her experiences adventuring, as well as from her knowledge of positive psychology having completed her Masters in the discipline, Paula developed Adventure Psychology which aims to help leaders and organisations cope, survive and thrive.

I am speaking with Dr Jonathan Fader in this episode. Fader was Director of Mental Performance for the New York Giants and served as team psychologist for the New York Mets for nine seasons. He is a certified consultant by the Association for Applied Sport Psychology and a resource doctor for Major League Baseball’s Rookie Development Program. Fader co-authored the fantastic 'Coaching Athletes to be Their Best: Motivational Interviewing in Sports' along with last weeks' guest Prof Stephen Rollnick.

I have the pleasure of speaking with Prof Stephen Rollnick in this episode. Stephen provides consultancy, mentorship and training on the subjects of motivation, change, teamwork and Motivational Interviewing (MI) of which he is a co-founder. Stephen is a clinical psychologist and an Honorary Distinguished Professor in the School of Medicine in Cardiff University. He has co-authored the brilliant book Coaching Athletes to be Their Best: Motivational Interviewing in Sports & it’s this book we mainly focus

I’m excited to be speaking with Dr Jennifer Fraser in this episode. Jennifer is an award-winning educator, researcher and best-selling author. Her online courses and workshops provide dynamic lessons in the impact neuroscientific knowledge has on personal development and culture-change. Jennifer has just finished her fourth book, The Bullied Brain: What Neuroscientists Know about Brain Scars and How to Heal Them. And it’s this book we mainly speak about.

I’m delighted to speak with Jenny Williams in this episode. Jenny represented South Australia in 6 sports: lacrosse, indoor lacrosse, touch, soccer, cricket and Australian rules football (AFL). Throughout her sporting career Jenny has coached many different sports including tennis, basketball, volleyball as well as the sports she herself played in. Jenny has written the fantastic book Think Prepare Play like a Champion which aims to uncover how to get to the top. And it’s this book we mainly speak ab

I’m speaking with Mark Bennett MBE in this episode. Mark is founder of Performance Development Systems (PDS) - a robust set of principles that facilitate world class learning and performance cultures and environments. PDS was designed for coaches, managers and teachers to better understand themselves and learn how to influence and get the best out of the people around them. We speak in detail about PDS and look at examples of Mark implementing it in different sporting environments.

I’m excited to speak with Simon Williams in this episode. Simon has a football playing background, is a former football coach and is now Life Skills Manager for League Football Education (LFE). LFE was established in 2004 by the Professional Footballers Association (PFA) and the English Football League (EFL) to be responsible for education and welfare across all EFL clubs. During our conversation Simon gives coaches some fantastic examples of thinking outside the box to help players develop mental skill

I’m delighted to speak with Jamie Taylor in this episode. Jamie is a former a coach and PE Teacher with a keen interest in human performance. He was head academy coach at Leicester Tigers and now works in the Pathways Team at the English Institute of Sport supporting Olympic and Para-Olympic talent pathways to develop their practice in talent development. We speak about motivation and commitment; the importance of self-regulation; understanding your athletes and parents nurturing their children’s sport.