Biography

Dr.Stephen D. Ross is a licensed Performance and Clinical Psychologist with over 12 years of experience working with professional, college and elite athletes, coaches and teams.

He is the principal of OPTIM, based out of Fort Collins, Colorado. His areas of expertise include:

Mental skills/toughness training

Achieving, optimizing and sustaining optimal performance states;

Mindfulness;

Team chemistry;

Recruiting assessments;

Designing and maintaining mental training rooms.

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Dr. Ross also specializes in working with players/athletes, coaches and support staff to foster environments that maximize motivation and trust, while decreasing fear-based learning and anxiety.

Dr. Ross utilizes a research based approach to creating and nurturing optimal team chemistry and individual mastery and confidence.

As a licensed Performance and Clinical Psychologist with over a decade of emergency training and experience, Dr. Ross is an expert in dealing with substance abuse issues, anxiety, depression, season/career ending injuries, and other major career and life transitions.

"Whatever you do or dream you can do - do it. Boldness has genius and power and magic in it." ~ Johann Goethe


"Make no small plans. ... they have no magic to stir men's blood." - Daniel Burnham


David Pauley

David Pauley

Thursday

It's Not About the Score

Study after study has confirmed that elite athletes (professional, olympic and collegiate) are more performance oriented than outcome/score oriented.  They are focused on attaining moment-by-moment optimal performing states.  The score, the stats, the system of measuring the outcomes is relevant only after the competition is over.  Elite athletes are not looking at the scoreboard and their focus is not on winning.  They are mindfully focused on personal excellence at every moment.  It's not at all surprising then, that a performance orientation is directly connected to greater self-confidence and a higher sense of personal control....which leads to better performance.  Over-emphasizing winning at any level is an idea that not only doesn't work well, it has been associated with higher levels of frustration, anxiety and depression in athletes. 
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