As a sport psychology coach, I work often with clients 1-on-1. There are three priorities I have with a new client, mainly which I got from a sport psychologist working in the NBA.
I want to give some insight into what a sports psychology coach does and where to get started if you are interested in sports psychology. The first priority I have when working with a new client is identifying their values. The third of those initial priorities is helping the client identify the single, smallest and simplest step that they can take tomorrow.
I want to give some insight into anybody interested in what a sports psychology coach does and where to get started if you are interested in sports psychology. I've been running a private practice for a little over a year now where I mainly work with one on one athletes, mostly at the high school level right now. Before that I had over 250 direct hours working with athletes during grad school. I recognize I'm still young and these may adapt over time, but thus far there are typically three priorities I have when working with any new client.
I I got these for mentoring chats with Dr. Alex Auerbach, a great performance psychologist who works with high level performers all the time. Most recently he was the director of Wellness and Development for the Toronto Raptors in the NBA. The first priority I have when working with a new client is identifying their values. For one, this helps me get to know who it is across from me. What do they hold close to their heart and identity as a person. But mostly it gives them clarity on the two to three most important ideals that drive them.
This the second priority is linking those values to goals. Values provide the clear foundation for what goals we set and they are the most reliable source of motivation to set and pursue goals. It gives the client and I an understanding of what they will work on and how I can help them to achieve those goals. And then the third of those initial priorities is helping the client identify the single, smallest and simplest step that they can take tomorrow to make those goals a reality. I've done videos on CODR before talking about this concept which is that small daily changes provide the trajectory for long term growth and also why wait to get started?
Might as well start today or tomorrow. I love the acronym win, which stands for what's important now and what's important now is the present moment. So we try to help the client establish what can they do right now with these initial priorities. Getting started on getting better doesn't have to be that complicated. I like to make it simple for our work together and there's plenty more work to do in the future. But but after these initial priorities we've got a good place to start.
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