Frequently Asked Questions

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Mental performance consulting (sometimes also referred to as mental performance coaching) is a service that aims to leverage the power of the brain just like personal training helps leverage the power of muscles.  Like any new physical skill, developing effective mental skills requires deliberate practice, consistency and repetition.

Mental training is an opportunity for athletes, coaches, parents and teams to learn how to improve on many different aspects of their performance, including:

- Developing consistency

- Increasing confidence

- Strengthening mental toughness

- Keeping their cool

- Increasing well-being

- Trusting their skills

And so much more.

Not at all! We would actually argue that mental training is best done proactively, so that when adversity hits you are going to be much more prepared. Why wait until there is a problem to train your mental game?

Additionally, mental training can also help you maintain high levels of play for longer periods of time, so that you are going to be less likely to experience the lows and could feel a greater sense of control over this process. So if you are performing at some of your highest levels ever, then working with a Mental Performance Consultant can help you learn how to sustain this more consistently.

When working with Upper Mentality, you are free to stop at any time without penalty.

If you have signed up for a program, then you will only be charged for the services that have been used up to that point in time. Any additional difference can be refunded, upon request.

We believe that kids learning mental game tools early can be a great way to help them build a foundation. It makes more sense to have them learn them early, as they are still developing their own perspectives and outlooks.

We have worked with youth athletes as young as 8 years old. The delivery of the programming is certainly different depending on the age of the athletes that we are working with. So while we aren't going to state a particular age, mental skills training for youth can certainly be helpful.

In short, a mental performance consultant is somebody who is typically more focused on the performance-enhancement side of athlete development. They work collaboratively with athletes, teams, coaches/team management, parents and more to foster greater performance, well-being and cohesion within groups. They are not qualified to (unless they are additionally a Sport Psychologist) assess or deal with psychopathology, such as depression, bipolar disorder and more.

To become accredited or certified as a Mental Performance Consultant with a major sport psychology association (e.g., Canadian Sport Psychology Association, Association for Applied Sport Psychology), there are rigorous procedures in place to ensure that you are getting the best quality service.

These procedures make it is necessary to complete (at minimum) a master's degree in a related field, have specific coursework requirements to compete, have 400 hours of supervised consulting work from an experienced mentor, have favourable client evaluations and sometimes are even required to complete a certification exam. They are also bound to a code of ethics, to promote ethical practice. To learn more about these procedures, please click here to read into the Canadian Sport Psychology Association's membership requirements.

Meanwhile, sport psychologists may also work on the performance enhancement side, while also being qualified to assess and treat psychopathology.