Watch and learn from current collegiate volleyball player and mental health leader, Hannah Watkin's experiences through every part of her journey so far.

One thing that stuck with me after our conversation was, “Physical and mental health are the same things, find time to treat your mental health the same way you take care of your physical health."

Hannah also answers…

What have been her biggest struggles in her career and how she has overcome them

What she does to feel confident before matches

What it's like to be a leader as Head Campus Captain for @thehiddenopponent 

What has brought her success

What is one thing she'd like to know sooner as an athlete

Hannah recovers from mistakes by asking herself, "Do I remember any mistakes I made in high school? (it's usually a no) and to remember that no one is going to remember this in a year, but they will remember how she responded consistently. 

You can find Hannah at…

Follow: @hannahrachellew

Loved...

Confidence doesn’t always just show up because we want it to. If we just relied on our confidence to show up, even after we just failed or made a mistake, it wouldn’t. You know this because you’ve seen your daughter show up with ZERO confidence after a slump, mistake, embarrassing herself, a bad game, a bad practice. You can see it all over her. Her body language, her demeanor, her face. 

Confidence is created. Confidence is created so that when you do fail, you can still show up with confidence. No matter what happened before. 

So, here’s the formula for confidence. 

Thoughts + Actions = Confidence 

Thoughts = positive affirmations, reminders, truths, self love, positive self talk

Actions = writing down those thoughts, putting down those thoughts somewhere where you will see them (equipment, arm, note, etc.), visualizing the success you want, deep breaths, practice 

This is how confidence is created even in the hard moments. 

Do...

We tend to limit ourselves and our potential before we even give ourselves the chance to succeed. Meaning, we are constantly falling short of our true potential. Sometimes, we don’t even realize what’s possible.

Does this sound like your athlete? 

I do this to myself all the time. I think about all the ways it couldn’t work or what’s “realistic” rather than just trusting myself and showing up with an open mind. 

The way that I get out of my own way and step into the most confident version of myself is by asking myself some questions, journaling, and visualizing. 

Have your daughter journal on these questions…

1If you already had the success you wanted, what would your confidence be like? 

2If you were the most confident version of yourself, how would you show up in your game/practice? 

3If you were already successful and confident, what would you say or think about yourself? 

Encourage your daughter to...

Watch and learn from former collegiate swimmer and mental health advocate, Olivia Bray’s experiences through every part of her journey so far.

One thing that stuck with me after our conversation was, “The relationships you create are so much more important than the trophies you’ll get.”

Olivia also answers…

‍ Being a student athlete, what have been your biggest struggles in your career and how have you overcome them?

‍ What do you do to feel confident for your races/swim meets?

‍ You're a Head Campus Captain for Hidden Opponent, how did you step into this role or why is mental health important to you?

‍ What is one thing you wish you would have known sooner as an athlete?

Olivia mimics race day to show up with confidence including how she speaks to herself. Here are some things she says to herself to create confidence:

I've prepared myself to the best of my ability.

She hasn't done what I've done to be here.

I'm a badass.

You can find...

Now that I have studied and really worked on my own mindset, I oftentimes wonder why I ever would think…

“Hitting is hard.” 

I mean, I probably had that thought often because that’s what the world was saying. Because to be truthful, it is hard. It’s one of the hardest things in sports. One of the hardest parts of baseball and softball. 

But, it was leading me to believe that it was hard for me when it didn’t have to be. It’s like I was making it harder than it was. Overcomplicating it. Overthinking it. 

Sound familiar? 

I’m thinking that you’re thinking… “Wow, this is so my daughter.” 

I work on getting perspective with the girls that I work with. I work on helping them reframe thoughts just like this.

Instead of thinking, “Hitting is hard,” let’s think things like this…

Hitting is so easy

I can hit in my sleep

I can hit anything 

Hitting comes so...

Watch and learn from former collegiate swimmer and mental health advocate, Nina Kucheran'’s experiences through every part of her journey so far.

One thing that stuck with me after our conversation was, “Your mental health is your responsibility.”

Nina also answers…

‍ Being a student athlete, what have been your biggest struggles in your career and how have you overcome them?

‍ What do you do to feel confident for your races/swim meets?

‍ You're a Head Campus Captain for Hidden Opponent, how did you step into this role or why is mental health important to you?

‍ What's it been like having a confidence coach?

‍ What keeps you motivated when you're just not feeling motivated?

‍ For all the girls that want to compete in college and are going through the recruiting process, what advice do you have?

‍ What is one thing you wish you would have known sooner as an athlete?

A few of my favorite other pieces of advice from Nina:

Ground...

This is what mental preparation looks like. Nothing fancy, simply visualizing what SHE wants instead of letting her mind spiral to all the doubt, fear, and negative outcomes.

Visualization is one of the most powerful mental training skills your daughter can use. When you visualize yourself succeeding (getting the hit, making a play under pressure, executing when your team needs you most), your brain is tricking your body into thinking you really did that thing physically, even though you only saw it in your mind. Meaning… if your daughter is working tirelessly physically and not seeing the results she wants, she could add this simple tool to her game and it could be the missing piece she’s needed all along to finally feel confidence in all her preparation.

Does your daughter need this?! Does your team need this?! I’ve got you! Did you know that my Game Ready Confidence (pre-game mindset routine) teaches to use visualization and has a bonus add-on to get a guided...

Watch and learn from former collegiate volleyball player and coach, author, speaker, sports reporter, and even more, Cameron Dobb’s experiences through every part of her journey so far.

One thing that stuck with me after our conversation was, “Play where your feet are, not where your teammates or parents or friends or others are.”

Cameron also answers…

You have had an incredible career so far, What have been your biggest struggles along the way and how have you overcome them? What do you do to be confident?

Did you ever work on your mindset while competing and going to school?

What do you think has brought you success in your career?

How do you lean on faith when things are hard? And in your every day life?

What keeps you motivated when you're just not feeling motivated?

What is one thing you wish you would have known sooner as an athlete?

A few of Cameron’s favorite verses are:

Proverbs 19:21 - God will give you the desires of your heart

...

I often think about the Oklahoma Softball program coached by Patty Gasso and what they have accomplished and created. If you aren’t familiar with the college softball world, Oklahoma has been one of the most dominant teams in softball history.

14 Conference Titles
15 NCAA Women’s College World Series Tournament Appearances
6 NCAA Women’s College World Series Championships… SIX!

In 2022, this team put up these records…
Won 30 of it’s 36 games by run-rule
Outscored opponents 354-27
Hit homers in 30 of it’s 36 games
4 players had at LEAST 10 home runs
Jocelyn Alo broke the NCAA DI home run record with her 96th career home run

This is incredible.

I have been drilling it into the girls I mentor that ANYTHING is possible. This team, this program has already proved what’s possible. So, why not her?! I want each girl I work with to know she is 100000% capable of this. It starts with her thoughts. What she thinks. You become what you think!

I try...

Watch and learn from collegiate D1 soccer player Rowan Lapi’s experiences competing at the college level!

One thing that stuck with me after our conversation was, “my mental fortitude came from knowing how important the mental game was.”

Rowan also answers…

You had an incredible career at NU, what have been your biggest struggles along the way and how have you overcome them? What do you do to be confident?

Did you ever work on your mindset while competing and going to school?

What do you think has brought you success in your career?

For all the girls that want to play college ball and are going through the recruiting process, what advice do you have?

What is one thing you wish you would have known sooner as an athlete?

Rowan’s favorite mantras are:

Consistency compounds

Should’ve never passed me

You belong

Trust the process

What’s next?

You can follow Rowan at @rowanlapi!

 Paige