My Story
Failure or Feedback?
On January 8, 2006, my dreams were crushed. For the previous fifteen years I was working as hard as I could to become a professional soccer player. Up until that dreadful day I had checked all the boxes to “make it”. I played for amazing youth club teams, trained like a mad man, earned a full scholarship to play Division one soccer, and was a four year starter with all the accolades to prove my worth. However, when I was invited to the 2006 Major League Soccer (MLS) Combine, I knew something was off. My body was prepared, my soccer skills were sharp, but my mind was far from ready to handle the pressures at the next level. I was one of sixty four athletes who flew to Los Angeles, CA to play with the best soccer players in the country for four days.
It was here, in front of my peers, and all the MLS coaches that I choked on an epic level. Those were the most miserable four days of my life. I couldn't eat, sleep, or relax, and could not wait for the experience to be over. I will never forget that final day of playing on January 8, 2006. I left the field, went back to the hotel and just walked. I walked the nine miles from our hotel to Hermosa Beach and Redondo beach and had one thought all day, why? Why did this happen to me? Why, at the biggest moment of my life did I fail on such a massive level? I felt like I let myself, family, friends, coaches, University and hometown down. Needless to say, I was heartbroken.
From that experience I set out on a mission: To make sure that this never happened to someone else. I began coaching. This started at my alma mater, The University of Hartford, located in CT. I went back and was hired as a soccer coach as well as the assistant strength and conditioning coach. To make ends meet I also coached youth soccer teams. For five years I coached from 6 am till 9 pm on most days. From that experience I moved on to Princeton University to work as a strength and conditioning coach, and subsequently work at Iona College in NY, and Seton Hall University in NJ.
When I arrived at Seton Hall I was twenty eight and looking to help my athletes more than just physically. I noticed most of my athletes were strong, fast, and talented, but like myself, they could improve on the mental side of the game. And there it was, right at my fingertips, Seton Hall offered a master’s degree in Sport Psychology. I was in! For the next two and a half years I dove head first into learning the skills that would help my high level athletes.
Being a strength and conditioning coach I was working with over two hundred athletes per day. So I began sharing this idea of “mental performance” with our athletes and they loved it! During that time I also began a mentorship to get certified through the Association for Applied Sport Psychology (AASP-CMPC). This was pivotal to getting the appropriate training to help my athletes maximize their potential.
After Seton Hall, I moved across the country to South Lake Tahoe, CA to work in a high performance training center alongside orthopedic surgeons, physical therapists, and wellness experts. In Tahoe I brought mental performance training to extreme sport athletes, mixed martial arts athletes, and those recovering from injury, including members of the United States Ski and Snowboard teams. I also began getting recruited to consult and share performance enhancement strategies with multiple organizations including: Professional Ski Instructors of America & American Association of Snowboard Instructors, Vail Resorts, Liberty Utilities, Sierra at Tahoe Ski Resort, and others.
In April 2023 I received my Doctorate degree in Sport and Performance Psychology focusing on Positive Leadership Administration. I hope to share my evidenced based, and applied experience with you and your teams!