{"id":28136,"date":"2024-10-30T07:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-10-30T07:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/?post_type=article&p=28136"},"modified":"2025-12-15T11:01:17","modified_gmt":"2025-12-15T11:01:17","slug":"why-the-upswell-in-demand-for-mental-skills-is-not-being-translated-into-effective-work","status":"publish","type":"article","link":"https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/articles\/why-the-upswell-in-demand-for-mental-skills-is-not-being-translated-into-effective-work\/","title":{"rendered":"Why the Upswell in Demand for Mental Skills Is Not Being Translated into Effective Work"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n
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\n 30 Oct 2024 <\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>Articles<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t

Why the Upswell in Demand for Mental Skills Is Not Being Translated into Effective Work<\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n \n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Category<\/div>\n Human Performance<\/a>, Leadership & Culture<\/a> <\/div>\n
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https:\/\/leadersinsport.com\/performance-institute\/articles\/why-the-upswell-in-demand-for-mental-skills-is-not-being-translated-into-effective-work\/<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/section>\n\n\n\n\n
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In the first of a new miniseries, mental performance coach Aaron Walsh makes the case for greater integration.<\/p>\n \n \n \n

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By Aaron Walsh<\/h6>\n
In recent years, there has been a focus on the mind’s crucial role in achieving peak performance.<\/h6>\n

It is almost impossible to listen to an interview with or watch a documentary about successful individuals and teams and not hear them refer to the role of mental skills and their significant impact on performance.<\/p>\n

As this awareness has grown, we have seen roles created and resources dedicated to help drive and support this vital work.<\/p>\n

But is this upswell in demand being translated into effective work? I was curious and began to ask other mental performance coaches I knew and enjoyed some valuable interactions.<\/p>\n

From these conversations, something quite clear and surprising emerged: though the work had been normalised, it needed to be integrated better, and as a result, the impact that both these coaches and the teams they were engaged with was not occurring to the level they hoped.<\/p>\n

This graphic from the 2016 Rio Olympics captures this perfectly:<\/p>\n

\"\"

Image: Aaron Walsh<\/p><\/div>\n

I wanted to understand the perceived gap between value and impact and embarked on a research project, which I\u2019ll discuss throughout this series.<\/p>\n

Each article will build upon the next. Here, I will define my approach to mental skills; the second will examine the need to have a framework in place for delivery; the third will capture the content that needs to be in place; the fourth will address the actual delivery of the work; and the final instalment will help you to find the right person for your team.<\/p>\n

The mental side of performance is not 90 per cent, but it\u2019s not insignificant either<\/strong><\/p>\n

Where does the mental side sit within a team\u2019s overall performance?<\/p>\n

Many coaches and athletes say it is 90 per cent but I think the real figure is much lower and, in my view, we need to correct this discrepancy because it significantly shapes the work at hand.<\/p>\n

To compete at the highest level, your athletes must be physically capable, possess the necessary skill level, and have an effective game plan. We can measure this for most teams and benchmark ourselves against the best we play against. Sports science as well as game film and analysis give us tremendous insight into this; and we can track the growth of our teams. You can\u2019t outthink a lousy body, lack of skill and poor strategy.<\/p>\n

However, when everything is equal, a mysterious performance aspect relates to your ability to deliver your best when it matters the most. It\u2019s hard to measure and quantify at times, but we all know it makes a difference.<\/p>\n

In the insanely competitive world of high performance, the mental aspect is a competitive advantage, and if you are not investing in it, you are leaving performance on the table.<\/p>\n

My research<\/strong><\/p>\n

I contacted 35 head coaches and performance directors and asked three questions.<\/p>\n

The first two were yes\/no questions:<\/p>\n

Do you think mental skills play an important role in the overall performance of your team?<\/em><\/p>\n

Do you currently have a strategy to integrate this work into your team environment?<\/em><\/p>\n

As you can imagine, 100 per cent answered \u2018yes\u2019 to the first question, but only four (11 per cent) answered \u2018yes\u2019 to the second question.<\/p>\n

The responses I received showed that mental skills were acknowledged as necessary, yet integrating this work effectively remains challenging for many teams.<\/p>\n

The last question was open-ended, and I wanted to know what prevented these teams from integrating this crucial work:<\/p>\n

What major obstacles prevent mental skills from being integrated into your team?<\/em><\/p>\n

From this question, four major themes emerged:<\/strong><\/p>\n

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  1. Lack of support from key stakeholders.<\/li>\n
  2. The work often became siloed.<\/li>\n
  3. The provider did not understand the demands of the environment.<\/li>\n
  4. The information presented was often too complex and not relevant to the needs of the athletes.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    The research also revealed two critical realities:<\/strong><\/p>\n

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    1. Most teams don\u2019t know where to begin<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      Most organisations and teams, though genuine in their desire to equip their teams with mental support, did not know where to begin.<\/p>\n

      When a team did engage with a potential provider, the nature of that work was often unclear. The work could become random, misaligned, and therefore ineffective. \u00a0As a result, the provider frequently felt siloed and isolated and usually lacked alignment with the core messages of others in the environment.<\/p>\n

      Alongside this, the lack of understanding, support and buy-in from key stakeholders (coaches, players, and support staff) created confusion about what the provider was there to do; in some cases, their role was reduced to fixing underperforming athletes, far from an ideal model and approach.<\/p>\n

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      1. A lack of clear application<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

        Secondly, a provider who engaged with a team without integration felt a lack of connection to the needs within the environment. This meant the information they presented to the team was only sometimes relevant. The theories were acceptable, but the ability to translate them into simple information for the athletes to apply was lacking. The failure to integrate meant providers, at times, were throwing darts at a board and hoping they\u2019d hit the bullseye.<\/p>\n

        The research raised an important question: how can we integrate this work more effectively? <\/strong>After all, teams value the work but are unsure how it fits within their setting.<\/p>\n

        To better understand the challenges facing most teams, it is worth exploring the five broad approaches to mental skills services:<\/p>\n

          \n
        1. No program<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

          Recognition of the need is almost universal, but knowing how to address it is challenging. Some teams struggled to find the right person, to have a model that fits their needs or to have a budget to invest in mental skills. They would often conclude that no program is better than one without clarity, intent, and appropriate resources. They are right.<\/p>\n

            \n
          1. The Minimalist approach<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

            Someone engages with the environment intermittently. They may do a few workshops. The workshops may be helpful, but they must be more strategic and embedded into the environment with follow-up for impact to occur.<\/p>\n

            The danger with this approach is that it stirs up the possibility of growing in the mental side of performance but does not effectively answer the need.<\/p>\n

            What this looks like:<\/strong> someone in the environment 3-4 times a year for 1-2 days<\/p>\n

              \n
            1. The Deficit approach<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

              This is the most common approach for teams who have begun some work. Mental skills are presented as something that is reserved for players\/ teams that are struggling. This approach further drives the negative stigma associated with the mental side.<\/p>\n

              With this model, mental space can quickly become a performance scapegoat. If the team does not perform, it\u2019s a mental issue, but the ability to address it and grow can\u2019t occur with a deficit approach.<\/p>\n

              What this looks like:<\/strong> someone in the environment a few hours a week or when needs arise<\/p>\n

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              1. The Skill approach<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

                A skill-based approach is when a team sees mental skills as something everyone needs to work on. The scope of the work consists of the team’s general mindset, providing tools to help people grow, and doing a lot of one-on-one work.<\/p>\n

                The result, however, can still be siloed from the rest of the coaching team; it is still person-dependent rather than program-dependent. Rather than having a strategy and model that shapes the provider’s work, the work relies on a person to come into a context and decide what needs to occur.<\/p>\n

                What this looks like:<\/strong> someone in the environment 2-3 days a week or on important tours\/ fixtures etc.<\/p>\n

                  \n
                1. The Integrated approach<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

                  This is the optimal scenario and most immersed model. There is a clear strategy that everyone agrees on, buys into, and drives. Mental skills are a critical pillar of performance, and financial resources and time reflect this. They work across the whole team. The focus areas would be coaching performance, coaching the other coaches, coaching the way culture is developed and lived, and coaching the leaders in the environment.<\/p>\n

                  What this looks like:<\/strong> they are fully integrated into the team and viewed as critical to success as a skilled coach. They are part of the environment regularly, have genuine input, and are seen as a valuable resource.<\/p>\n

                  Questions to ask yourselves:<\/strong><\/p>\n

                    \n
                  • Does your team currently have a mental performance strategy?<\/li>\n
                  • What approach best suits your team and meets the mental demands it faces?<\/li>\n
                  • Are you setting up your providers to be successful and have an impact?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

                    Aaron Walsh is performance coach and consultant. He is currently the Mental Skills Coach for Chiefs Rugby<\/strong> in New Zealand and Scotland Rugby<\/strong>. If you would like to speak to him, please contact a member of the Leaders Performance Institute team.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/p>\n <\/div>\n \n \n \n <\/div>\n

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