In the world of sports, everyone wants to be the best. There is no room for mediocrity and countless hours are spent working to make even the slightest improvements. While there is no one right way to be at the top, there are several characteristics that show up again and again in the most successful coaches, athletes, and parents of athletes. This series will dive into each one of these – examining what aspects truly matter and how you can work to develop your own skills in these areas.

All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. The higher you go in sports, the more work you put in to develop your physical abilities, your technical skills, and your knowledge of the game. Work is good, but without play your performance will suffer. Learn why play is critical for peak performance in sport and ways to incorporate it into your training.

Slumps are common in sport, but they aren't something you have to be stuck with. Learn 3 strategies to bust out of a slump so that you can stay performing at your best.

Train how you compete and compete how you train. There’s no one right way to be an athlete. Instead, you want to make sure that you are you in both situations. This allows you to match your training performance to your competition performance.

Flow is a sought after experience for athletes, but the reality is that it is NOT what you want in training. Learn more about what leads to a flow state, what you actually want during training, and how to better approach your training to get the most out of it.

Get out of the extremes and into the messy middle. Create your own mental guardrails to keep your mindset in the messy middle where all of the best performances take place. Make the adjustments necessary to ensure you have the right approach for the situation.