Be the Best Version of Yourself When it Counts the Most, Dr. Karen MacNeill, PhD., MacNeill Performance Consulting & Lead Mental Health Counselor of the Canadian Olympic Committee

By Cindra Kamphoff | February 8, 2019

Dr. Karen MacNeill has the unique experience of having both competed and consulted on the World Stage.  She is a registered psychologist and performance consultant with over 18 years of experience helping Olympians, organizations and business leaders consistently bring their best in high pressure situations.

She has worked with athletes competing at the last 4 Olympic Winter Games, and competed herself at the international level for over a decade.

Karen applied her knowledge and expertise in her capacity as Manager of Sport Psychology Services for Vancouver Olympic Committee’s medical team at the 2010 Olympic Games.  Most recently, she was the Lead Mental Health Counsellor for the Canadian Olympic Committee at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Korea.  At the 2018 Games, she was also the Mental Performance Consultant for Ski Cross Canada who had their best Olympic result to date capturing the Gold medal in the men’s event and Gold and Silver medals in the women’s event.

Karen has become a partner and Chief Product Officer with a digital health media company, Headversity, which offers innovative education through on-site and on-line programs to help people to build mental resilience and thrive.

In this episode, Karen and Cindra discuss:

  • Why you need a “mental fitness golf bag”
  • The rationale for giving 80-90% not 100%
  • The importance of considering your personal brand
  • Why we each need to “do the work” on ourselves
  • How resilience is proactive not reactive
“The best of the best are clear on who they are and how they want to show up.” @DrKMacNeill 
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“The best of the best are able to lock into the experience and let it unfold. Adapt and react to what is versus what is suppose to be.” @DrKMacNeill
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“The best are hard on themselves. They demand a lot, but at the same time have this internal belief KNOWING that they got this. Working on that inner coach or inner narrative to be more productive rather than defeating.” @DrKMacNeill
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“Create your mental map, but also have some flexibility. What’s Plan A? What’s Plan B? What’s Plan C? Planning for the different scenarios that you can face and then just getting engaged in that present moment. Noticing what’s coming at you. Being present and grounded will allow you to be a little more adaptable.” @DrKMacNeil
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“It’s within you, we just have to reveal it.” @DrKMacNeill
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“It starts with you. Your self-expertise. What are your super powers? what does high performance look like to you? What do you want people to say about you? @DrMacNeill
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Posted in Podcast