Mental Skills Training for Teams & Organizations
Helping teams and sport organizations compete with consistency, lead with composure, and bring their best when the stakes are highest
As a coach, director, or team leader, you might be noticing:
What You’re Seeing
High-performing athletes whose individual excellence doesn't consistently show up in team performance
A roster that competes well in lower-stakes situations but struggles when the pressure peaks
Group chemistry that breaks down after roster changes, difficult cuts, or a losing stretch
Coaches and directors absorbing the weight of every outcome, carrying it from one game or season into the next
Communication gaps creating confusion about roles, expectations, and how to compete together
How Apex Helps Teams
We help teams and organizations perform when it matters most. Our deep understanding of high-pressure competitive environments helps your group:
Build Mental Skills
- Pre-competition preparation routines the whole team can anchor to
- Visualization and mental rehearsal
- Communication strategies for coaches, directors and leaders such as motivational interviewing
- Group focus and concentration techniques
- Emotional regulation strategies that hold under pressure
Perform Together When It Counts
- Understanding and channeling collective competitive energy
- Performing skillfully when anxiety or adversity is present
- Building group resilience through setbacks and changes
- Team mental preparation for high-stakes competitions, evaluations, or major events
Strengthen Their Well-Being
- Connecting individuals with what drives them and what unites the group
- Building dependability and shared confidence under pressure
- Setting process-focused team and individual goals
- Balancing performance demands with sustainable well-being
- Developing a resilient, growth-oriented team culture
Organizations
Why Apex is Different
Mental Performance Focused
Athlete + Apex Counselor/Coach
Guidance from former athletes who understand competitive environments, teams, and organizational dynamics from the inside. We bring this experience directly into the performance counseling and coaching work we do with your group.
Tailored to Your Team and Organization
Every engagement is grounded in proven sports mental performance counseling and coaching methodology that is specific to your team and sport organization.
Biofeedback Training
See your progress in real time. Learn to control your body's stress response with scientific, tangible tools that resonate with athletes, coaches, and team leaders.
Gateway Approach
We make mental performance accessible through a practical, skill-building lens. Teams and organizations welcome our objective and independent focus on performance and group dynamics.
What Brings Teams & Organizations to Apex
Performing Together Under Pressure
What we work on: Understanding pressure responses, breathing and regulation techniques, pre-competition routines, reframing stress, and building dependability through shared preparation.
Improving Communication
What we work on: Improving communication skills and relationships, removing mental blockers, and building trust that translates into team chemistry.
Managing High-Stakes Moments
What we work on: Managing expectations, focusing on controllables, maintaining perspective, and performing well under group evaluation.
Resilience Through Adversity
What we work on: Emotional regulation, quick recovery strategies, understanding pressure responses, channeling intensity productively, and developing team composure over time.
Reconnecting with Purpose and Motivation
What we work on: Reconnecting with intrinsic motivation, removing unnecessary external pressures, finding meaning in the process, and empowering teams to make confident decisions.
Developing Team Leadership
What we work on: Leadership mental skills, motivational interviewing, and composure in front of the team.
Meet the Team
Collectively, the Apex team brings over a decade of experience counseling athletes and high performers, including work with professional NASCAR organizations, MLB, NBA, NFL, and PGA players, and NCAA athletic departments at every division.
Dr. Ben Oliva | Doctorate in Psychology (PsyD) | Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor (LCMHC) | Certified Mental Performance Consultant (CMPC) | Biofeedback Certified (BCIA)
Dr. Oliva and his team specialize in working with competitive athletes at every level. The Apex team includes former athletes who understand competitive sports from the inside, bringing that experience directly into their performance counseling and coaching work. Dr. Oliva has been featured as an expert in Bustle and on podcasts, including Michael Lewis's "Against the Rules" and Leadership Under Fire.
Victoria McKnight | Master of Social Work (MSW) | Licensed Clinical Social Worker Associate (LCSWA)
Victoria is part of the Apex team of former athletes who understand competitive sports from the inside, bringing that experience directly into their performance counseling and coaching work. A five-year Division I soccer student-athlete and All American she works with athletes and high performers navigating the pressures of competition and life transitions on and off the field.
Based in Charlotte, NC. Virtual sessions available.
FAQs
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The Apex team offers both performance counseling and coaching, and they work together. Coaching builds a team's practical skills: routines, focus strategies, and pre-competition preparation. Counseling addresses the individual emotional and psychological side: anxiety, identity, and pressure responses. We meet your team leaders and players where they are and work across both as needed.
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We recommend starting with an introductory team workshop where we can talk through our approach. Most participants engage readily once they understand the work is performance-focused.
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Yes. We work with coaches, athletic directors, and organizational stakeholders to design programs, set expectations, and evaluate progress. We establish transparent shared group norms in advance, so participants feel safe and know what is and is not shared.
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Yes. Many of our workshop and group program formats are available on-site, wherever your team is located, as well as virtually for ongoing programming.
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We work with individual performers within a team context, small groups, full rosters, or entire athletic departments. Reach out and we can discuss what makes sense for your team.
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We work with youth teams, high school programs, elite club teams, college programs, and professional organizations. Programs are adapted to be age-appropriate and suited to your team's competitive level.
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Mental performance training applies across every sport and competitive environment. Our team has experience with baseball, basketball, football, soccer, tennis, golf, swimming, track, lacrosse, volleyball, and more.
Ready to Give Your Team the Mental Edge?
Start your journey by contacting us.