Stay tuned for an exciting new development!  In the very near future, I will be launching a new product – an information-filled CD (maybe 2!) and workbook on the mental game of cheerleading competition preparation. 

Many elite athletes work with sports psychologists to improve their performances, so why not cheerleaders?  Many pro athletes in most sports, including baseball, football, basketball, and soccer either work directly with sports psychologists or have coaches who are well versed in sports psychology strategies.  And virtually all Olympic teams have a sports psychologist on board. 

Seems to me it’s time cheerleaders reap the benefits of what sports psychology has to offer! 

In high level sports it is estimated that 50 – 90% of success can be attributed to mental factors such as confidence, composure, and concentration, to name a few.  These are known collectively as mental toughness.   Mental toughness skills can be strengthened and taught in order to ensure consistently and excellence in performance.  That’s what I do. 

I will be offering excerpts from the CD in future posts so be sure to check in regularly and please feel free to ask questions!

What does it take to be the best? 

What are the factors that contribute to excellence? 

Think you know?  Sports psychologists say that anywhere from 50 – 90% of success in high level sports can be attributed to mental factors known collectively as Mental Toughness. 

Mental Toughness doesn’t mean being aggressive or, well, tough in a rough-tough-mean way. I like to think of Mental Toughness as the ability to perform at an optimal level no matter what the circumstances. 

Interested in seeing how you rate on the 8 Mental Toughness factors?  Great! Go ahead and rate yourself on all the dimensions below. 

And stay tuned for lots more about this topic including some tips on how to improve your scores! 

Mental Toughness Checklist 

Evaluate your own Mental Toughness capacities by rating each factor on a scale of 1-10 with 1 being low, 5 being average, and 10 being very high. 

1. Championship mind-set

(Open to feedback about your performance.) 

0________________________________10 

2. Concentration

(Ability to stay focused on task and not get distracted.) 

0________________________________10 

3. Composure

(Poised and self-assured in high stakes situations.) 

0________________________________10 

4. Come-back from mistakes

(Ability to bounce back quickly and let go of set-backs/mistakes.) 

0________________________________10 

5. Clarity about motivation

(Knowing what you want and why you want it.) 

0________________________________10 

6. Commitment

(Dedicating yourself to a course of action.) 

0________________________________10 

7. Confidence

(Belief in your ability to perform well.) 

0________________________________10 

8. Courage

(Quality of spirit that enables you to take on challenges.) 

0________________________________10