At what age/competition level should a youth athlete focus on building up their mental strength?
Any age! I work athletes as young as 8 years old in person and we have them even younger going through the Mental Toughness Academy along with their parents. The key is to make the learning “age appropriate.” I don’t teach the same way to an 8-year-old as I do to a college athlete but the lessons are generally centered around the same concepts: Focus, Confidence, Determination & Resilience, especially under pressure. That’s my definition of Mental Toughness. Younger athletes learn faster and the messages penetrate the deeper recesses of the mind when your approach is “story-based.” In other words, don’t teach something directly to an elementary schooler, give a story to illustrate the point.