TRAVIS ROGERS

In my Senior baseball season at New Mexico State University I first became aware of the huge role that the mental game plays in sports.  Prior to my senior season I had been named the team's captain, and I had high hopes of playing well, being a leader, and finishing my college playing career on a high note. When the season started poorly for me personally, and our team wasn't playing well, I did not know how to respond.  The perceived pressures became more than I could handle and within the first few weeks of the season I contemplated quitting. The game that I had loved my entire life, that had taught me so much, and had blessed me with so many great relationships, had become a daily grind, a nightmare.  I finished the year, but following my Senior season I never played another game of baseball.
 

In 2008 I got back on the baseball field for the first time in 16 years as a coach for my son's tee-ball team.  It was great to be back involved and to watch the boys and girls having so much fun. However, over the next few years I noticed differences from back when I was playing youth sports. Kids were now much harder on themselves, parents were more demanding, and the coaches seemed to be worried more about winning than giving the kids a great experience.  As I became more involved, and moved further along with my son, I noticed it more and more.  The fun, the development, and the over all experience were being taken away from the kids.  These kids were not loving the game!  I decided that I could make a difference as a parent and a coach.  For me this meant learning what I could about sport psychology.  I went back to school and acquired a Master's Degree in Sport & Exercise Science with an emphasis on Sport Psychology.

 

Through my studies, and through practice, I have learned that the proper mindset can lead to optimal experience, development, and success for an athlete.  This mindset can be learned, practiced, and owned by an athlete. My goal is for athletes to own a mindset that will keep them passionately pursuing their chosen sport for as long as they choose.