The Balanced Athlete Car Convos; About Purpose, Balance and Play!

Episode on Engagement

E — Engagement

“When teens feel engaged, they stop performing for approval and start performing from purpose.”

E — Engagement Check List/Journal Prompts

For Teen Athletes

For Parents

Engagement Car Convo Talking Points:

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PERMA EPISODEs

Positive Psychology in Sports

PERMA is gold for teen athletes, and weaving it into a training conversation on your podcast will feel both practical and inspiring. You can frame it as a way to build not just better athletes, but healthier, more resilient humans. Here’s a set of strong, clear talking points you can drop straight into an episode.

Incorporating PERMA Into Teen Athlete Training

Why PERMA Matters for Teen Athletes

P — Positive Emotion -

P- Positive emotions – the foundation of well-being, this includes joy, gratitude, serenity, excitement, pride, hope and inspiration. This element focuses on increasing the frequency of positive emotions in daily life which leads to greater overall happiness.

Positive Emotions – from Pat Ivey Performance How NFL Stars Stay Motivated & Resilient: The PERMA Model in Action - My Doctoral Dissertation Part 5 - Pat Ivey

Positive Emotions: Controlling Your Mindset

The best athletes understand one simple truth: your thoughts control your performance.

NFL players deal with extreme pressure. Every snap is scrutinized, every mistake is amplified, and every decision is made under intense conditions. If they allow negativity to take over—self-doubt, frustration, fear—they won’t last long.

That’s why elite players train themselves to focus on positive emotions that fuel their performance. They use tools like:

For athletes looking to build this skill, the key is to be intentional about how you think. Your brain will naturally focus on stress if you don’t train it otherwise.

How to apply this:

The mind is a powerful tool. Control it, and you control your performance.

Visualization techniques significantly enhance athletic performance by 

improving focus, building confidence, and refining skills through mental

 rehearsal.

Benefits of Visualization for Athletes

PERMA Checklist/Journaling for Parents & Teen Athletes

a PERMA checklist is such a powerful tool for families because it gives both parents and teen athletes a shared language for well‑being, confidence, and performance. If you would like for me to send you my free PERMA Checklist for Parents and Teen Athletes, drop me a message on IG or FB with the word Free PERMA Checklist and I’ll send you a copy. We will go over each pillar’s checklist in each episode and it will also be included in my show notes.

P — Positive Emotion Check List

For Teen Athletes

For Parents

Positive emotions Car Convo Talking Points:

In this episode I speak about the positive phycology practice called PERMA and how you can use this to craft a life of happiness ad meaning in sports, careers and every aspect of living. 

Parent and Teen Athlete PERMA

PERMA is a positive psychology practice developed by Martin Seligman. It provides a structured approach to well-being through five distinct elements: Positive emotion, engagement, relationships, meaning, and accomplishments. When combined with Ikigai, it helps offer a powerful methodology to find alignment between internal passions and external contributions, promoting a balanced, powerful a fulfilling life. PERMA helps bridge the gap between goal setting and action plans and deeper emotional psychological and existential questions that some face. It can help:

P- Positive emotions – the foundation of well-being, this includes joy, gratitude, serenity, hope and inspiration. This element focuses on increasing the frequency of positive emotions in daily life which leads to greater overall happiness.

E- Engagement – This refers to being fully absorbed in activities where experiences flow.  Remember, flow is the state where time seems to stand still, one is completely immersed in what one is doing. This aspect of PERMA emphasizes that being engaged in meaningful activities leads to fulfillment.

R- Relationships – Positive relationships are essential to well-being, and meaningful, supportive relationships provide the love, care and sense of belonging that are integrated to a happy life.

M – Meaning – This is about feeling connected to something larger than oneself. Whether it’s contributing to the community, connecting with spiritual or religious beliefs or perusing work that impacts society positively, meaning provides a sense of purpose and fulfillment.

A -Accomplishment – The desire to achieve, accomplishment is a natural human drive. Setting goals, experiencing success, and getting recognition all contribute to one’s sense of competence and self-worth.

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Journey of a Volleyball Mom Book

Nanci Cosby is a devoted mom to three girls and one boy, and a proud “Nonni” to her grandbabies. She loves God, cherishes her family and friends, and never turns down a good cup of coffee.

Nanci is the founder of NJ Consulting, LLC, where she brings together her passion for people and her extensive professional experience. She became a certified life coach through the World Coach Institute in 2019 and earned her Master of Education with a focus in Talent Development in 2021.

In 2012, Nanci published her autobiography, High on Hope, which shares her journey as a preacher’s kid who lost her way in the world of addiction and ultimately found her path back through hope and healing. By telling her story with honesty and courage, she inspires others to transform their hurt into hope.

With more than 12 years in the mental health field and 20 years in the addiction field, Nanci blends education, expertise, and lived experience to help individuals discover their path to success.

Through NJ Consulting, LLC, she offers:

Nanci’s mission is simple and powerful: to guide people toward clarity, confidence, and meaningful growth.

NJ Consulting, LLC

Facebook

Nanci's Instagram

High on Hope Book

Nanci Cosby is a devoted mom to three girls and one boy, and a proud “Nonni” to her grandbabies. She loves God, cherishes her family and friends, and never turns down a good cup of coffee.

Nanci is the founder of NJ Consulting, LLC, where she brings together her passion for people and her extensive professional experience. She became a certified life coach through the World Coach Institute in 2019 and earned her Master of Education with a focus in Talent Development in 2021.

In 2012, Nanci published her autobiography, High on Hope, which shares her journey as a preacher’s kid who lost her way in the world of addiction and ultimately found her path back through hope and healing. By telling her story with honesty and courage, she inspires others to transform their hurt into hope.

With more than 12 years in the mental health field and 20 years in the addiction field, Nanci blends education, expertise, and lived experience to help individuals discover their path to success.

Through NJ Consulting, LLC, she offers:

Nanci’s mission is simple and powerful: to guide people toward clarity, confidence, and meaningful growth.

NJ Consulting, LLC

Facebook

Nanci's Instagram

High on Hope Book

Today’s guest is someone whose career has stretched across three decades, three continents, and just about every corner of elite and professional sport. Dr. Paul Gamble has worked with athletes of all ages and backgrounds, but his deepest passion lies in helping young athletes unlock their potential and supporting the next generation of sport stars in a healthy, sustainable way.

Paul is the author of Sports Parenting—first released in 2022 and now arriving in a newly revised edition in January 2026—where he brings parents into the conversation around youth development and long‑term athlete wellbeing. Originally from the UK, Paul’s journey has taken him through New Zealand and now to Canada, where he lives with his wife Sian and his son Leo.

In addition to running his independent coaching initiative launched in 2019, Paul consults with organizations around the world and provides continuing education for coaches and practitioners across disciplines. He also shares thoughtful, research‑driven insights on youth sport and talent development through his Athlete Generation Substack.

I’m thrilled to have him here today to dig into what really shapes young athletes, how families can support the journey, and what the future of youth sport could—and should—look like.

Sports Parenting Book

Instagram

Books/Amazon

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Athlete Generation substack

Informed Practitioner in Sport website 

Prepared Athlete Training & Health

In this episode I have a convo with Audrey Costa — a dedicated wellness professional whose work bridges health, experiential learning, and trauma-informed care. Audrey holds a B.Sc. in Physical Education and Health, a Master’s in Clinical Mental Health Counseling, and is a Licensed Associate Counselor in New Jersey. With extensive experience supporting adolescents and adults through addiction, recovery, trauma, grief, and emotional dysregulation, she’s guided individuals across every level of care, from residential treatment to outpatient settings.

Before stepping into clinical practice, Audrey spent over 14 years in public education and later served as a Regional Wellness Manager in corporate wellness. She’s also certified and trained in personal training, health coaching, yoga, mindfulness, nutrition, and nature-informed therapy. As a Certified Peer Recovery Specialist and Licensed Hiking & Camping Guide, Audrey blends therapeutic skill with somatic, movement-based, and nature-centered approaches to healing.

As the founder of Deep Rooted Wellness & Creatives, Audrey integrates her 20 years of outdoor education into powerful experiential offerings. She leads monthly nature therapy hikes and Wild Resilience Backpacking Retreats for women—small, intentional groups designed to foster healing, resilience, and connection. Through holistic mind-body-spirit coaching, she creates transformative spaces where individuals can regulate their nervous systems, build inner strength, and reconnect with their authentic selves through the healing power of nature.

🌿 Audrey Costa, M.A., LAC, NCC

Instagram

Audrey's recommended Podcasts:

Books:

Mandi Clouse grew up in MN, swam on a swim team from third grade through colleague. Mandi has been active all her life and has enjoyed many different types of athletic activities including marathons, CrossFit games and body building competitions! She was married in 2003 to a man in the Air Force and has moved every two years, taking her and her family all around the world. She is the mom of four athletes all in different sports and with different personalities. God is the center of their family. Mandi's husband has just recently retired, and they have decided to make OK their forever place. Mandy shares with us some great insight on how success can look different for each athlete and how working hard and giving your 100% can pay off and leave a legacy even if you're not the team's top scoring MVP.

This live unedited episode was something I wanted to do on the first day of 2026 to highlight the amazing humans that I had on as guests! I took some of my favorite talking points from each guest's episode along with the books and podcasts they recommended! I also share my two words to set my intention and filter for 2026! Happy New Year! Buckle up and enjoy the ride! Thank you to all my guests for being vulnerable and sharing your story to help those in this world around you! Love you guys!!!

Ikigai is a Japanese concept that is centuries old and it is a holistic way of uncovering your life's meaning or purpose by tapping into what you love, what this world needs that only you can give in your uniqueness, what you are good at, and what you can get paid for. In today's episode we dig a bit deeper into this concept and how to apply it to your life. After all, it is easy to fall into the idea that you are your title, whether that be the title of an athlete in a specific sport or whether your job title. We are all human beings, and we are not limited to our titles that only tell you what we do, we are much more than that! Uncovering your unique purpose frees you up to live a life full of purposeful meaning that is tailored to who you are and what you can contribute to the world around you on and off the field, court, classroom or job!

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