Matt is a mental performance coach who works with athletes on assessing their mental skills (i.e. confidence, motivation, focus, self-management, etc.) and developing their abilities in this often-neglected component of performance. His focus is on helping people better understand, and more importantly improve, the aspects of performance which so often fail to get the attention they deserve – building and maintaining confidence, the ability to perform well under pressure, developing mental resilience, staying in the moment, etc. Matt’s coaching is informed by a background as an athlete, coach, teacher and mentor, enabling him to work effectively with people from all backgrounds. He is passionate about the field of applied sport psychology and its value, both in the athletic arena and in everyday life.

Matt’s formal educational background includes a Bachelor’s in Business Administration with a Sports Marketing concentration from the University of Oregon in 2003, a Master’s in Education and Teaching Credential from the University of Oregon in 2004, and a Master’s in Sport Psychology from John F. Kennedy University in 2012.  His time at JFKU provided opportunities to facilitate mental training with athletes from a variety of sports including baseball, cross country, basketball, golf, football, lacrosse, soccer, and strength & conditioning.  He was able to accumulate over 500 hours of experience working with athletes during his two years in the program, and presented his final Applied Project titled, “Acknowledge-Adjust-Accept: An Applied Model for Helping Performers Excel Under Pressure.”

Currently Matt consults with select teams within the athletic department at Westmont College in Santa Barbara, CA as well as a variety of teams and athletes in the region. 

Matt is also a certified trainer for the Positive Coaching Alliance, leading workshops for athletes and coaches.  The workshops are designed to help participants maximize their experience with youth sports and emphasize positive character development through sport.