This is an age old question on which I hope to shine a little light. There is no trickery or magic applied by psychologists when working with people in a performance environment. As with all skill development, hard work and commitment are key to progression. Essentially, psychologists remove perceived barriers that prevent a person's development and progress within their performance domain - irrespective of skill level. The means by which they do this are varied and chartered psychologists have commonly spent between 6 and 8 years learning rigorous techniques to achieve this end. That means they have spent 6-8 years studying how the mind works most effectively in different situations, how the mind influences performance and how skill is developed. In addition, they have been continuously supervised and scrutinised throughout their training.

There are lots of well written, informative posts about the techniques used by psychologists and I do not seek to reiterate them here. The list would be too long. Fundamentally, performers (or their support network) ask themselves "what would a psychologist do for me?" And the answer is that we would enhance and increase your existing skill set to ultimately ensure that you reach your goals. Then, once you have reached your goals, we help you identify what you want to achieve next and, crucially, how you want to achieve it. The role of the psychologist can be singular or as part of a performer's team. If appropriate, he/she will work with you and your support network/colleagues/friends to ensure that his/her techniques enhance the development you are already receiving.

But surely I know this stuff already?

So why bother going to a psychologist if it sounds as if you can access this support elsewhere? The simple answer is because he/she is the expert in the mental approach to performance - that is what all those years of study are for - which is completely different from what other support people provide. Coaches in all performance areas have some understanding of mental skills but the psychologist has access to skills that enable you to take your performance to another level - whether that be of performance or enjoyment.

Psychology is not something that anyone need be unclear about. It is true that, as an industry it is poor at marketing itself, but after decades of continuous research into how the mind works optimally in performance and practice settings, it certainly knows how to develop your performance and you, irrespective of the domain. Most performance coaches I have met have a voracious appetite for understanding the mental side of the game which is why good coaches have a strong referral network of additional assistance to develop a player (psychologist; physical trainer; strength and conditioning coach etc). A psychologist will develop a harmonious relationship with your other coaches where everyone's aim is the achievement of the ultimate goals of the performer. This is most efficiently achieved when experts in the different skill areas work together. If you ever wonder why your performance has plateaued, a very good starting point is the extent to which you have worked on the mental side of your development.

So how long does it take?

Depending on their aims, most performers start to see and, crucially, feel improvements to their mental approach within the first three sessions, with sufficient focussed practice at the relevant mental skills. Consideration is then given to which coach is best placed to develop the individual further (see my previous post on this point). In this way, the harmonious relationship between coaches operates in order to achieve the maximum development for the performer as quickly as possible.

In light of the above, I would suggest that the only question remaining, if appropriate, is "why am I not working with a psychologist?"

We are there to help.