Dr. Larry Lauer is our guest for the fifteenth episode of Baseline Intelligence. Larry is the mental skills specialist for the USTA Player Development program. He was also an assistant coach for Michigan State and helped the team reach the NCAA tournament in 2013.

We talk:

1:14 What is a mental skills coach?

3:07 Mental toughness

5:07 Resilience

10:30 Making your practices challenging

15:39 Handling match nerves

21:35 Seeing the big picture

24:26 Taking time to practice mental skills

29:59 Why people neglect working on their mindset

32:43 Taking practice skills to the match

35:19 Maintaining focus during a match

36:21 Handling cheaters

40:35 Differences between pros and amateurs

**sound effects from https:www.zapsplat.com