In Episode 71, Dan Abrahams, Sports Psychologist, best-selling author of four books, Founder of the Dan Abrahams Soccer Academy and The Sport Psych Show Podcast, and former pro golfer, talks with Phil about his sports psychology work, his books, and his podcast, the concepts of “Teamship” and motivational climate, extrinsic vs. intrinsic motivation, pre-failing, self-leadership, his personal why, how we can coach difficult players by asking great questions, and whether we can recreate the pressure of a penalty kick outside of a match. Specifically, Dan discusses:

• His story, his work with Premier League and other football/soccer teams, his books, his podcast, how he developed his passion for soccer and leadership, and how he got to where he is today (1:31)
• What excites him about the increase of awareness of the importance of mindset and sports psychology in sports over the past several years (11:53)
• In which sport the mental game is more important: soccer or golf (18:04)
• The concept of “Teamship” and why it is important (24:49)
• The Motivational Climate of a Team, what it is, and what it has to do with a team’s culture and burnout (28:13)
• Extrinsic vs. Intrinsic Motivation, get-to vs. have-to mentality, and how they are related to short- and long-term performance (41:07)
• The concept of pre-failing (47:01)
• Why self-leadership and a leader’s mindset are important (51:13)
• His personal why and how it is playing out in his life (57:05)
• “Not” coaching difficult players, but teaching them to coach themselves through questions (59:23)
• How personality styles are related to the sports psychology work (1:03:45)
• Whether it is possible to recreate the pressure of a penalty kick in a training environment (1:07:31)
• How he uses lessons learned in soccer in his family relationships (1:12:16)
• His recommendation, which is very personal to him (1:13:44)

Resources and Links from this Episode

• Dan’s Website
• The Sport Psych Show Podcast
• Uncut Video of the Episode
• HSEL Facebook Group
• Coaching the Bigger Game information
• Warrior Way information
• Phil Darke’s email address
• Soccer Tough: Simple Football Psychology Techniques to Improve Your Game, by Dan Abrahams
• Soccer Tough 2: Advanced Psychology Techniques for Footballers, by Dan Abrahams
• Soccer Brain: The 4C Coaching Model for Developing World Class Player Mindsets and a Winning Football Team, by Dan Abrahams
• Golf Tough: Practice, Prepare, Perform, and Progress, by Dan Abrahams
• The Inner Game of Tennis: The Classic Guide to the Mental Side of Peak Performance, by W. Timothy Gallwey