David Vanbeenen
My name is David and I am going to get very real with you.
I always dreamed BIG in sports when I was young. I always cared deeply for people and the relationships in my life and wanted to make a positive impact especially on young athletes, who I have always loved to coach and work with.
I was a goofy looking kid, skinny, tall at 6'7, acne and dealt a lot with bullies and being made fun of.
Due to this, I put my energy into sports. I worked my hardest at being the best athlete I could be as a kid, eventually earning a college scholarship and becoming an All American Basketball Player.
Being an athlete taught me a lot about just how important it was to prepare mentally and physically to reach my peak performance. I realized that the mental aspect of sports carried a much heavier weight than I even knew at the time. I even look back today and realize that, although I was a successful athlete, I had weaknesses that really held me back, all that could have been solved with some mindset training or coaching.
It wasn't until I went through a very personal struggle, that I realized exactly how critical mental toughness and the proper mindset really is.
You see, I became a business professional soon after my playing career ended. I continued coaching and participating in sports but my passion was now in the business world and taking care of my family. However, after a few bad business deals and one of the worst recessions this country has ever seen, I lost everything.
I was broke, declaring bankruptcy, trying to find a new career in a full blown recession and my thoughts and mind started going into a very depressed and hopeless state. I let outside factors control everything that I was thinking. I couldn't comprehend how this happened and how I was going to get out of it. I was slowly sinking into a depression and my mindset began to shift to very dangerous place. Soon after, I found myself in legal trouble for something I didn't do and I watched my former business partners and friends make sure the fingers were pointed at me to take the blame.
Not only was I dealing with the loss of business and everything I owned, I now was facing this incredible situation and it completely devastated me. Everything that I once believed was important and what I stood for, was now in question. I never realized how damaging it could be when you stop believing in yourself and you start to let past events dictate your performance. When I reached my darkest point, I realized I needed to change, I needed to strengthen my mindset and I needed to declare the fact that I was not going to continue to perform the way I was any longer. I stood up, in my bedroom, and just screamed at the top of my lungs.
I began to research just how powerful the mind is. How beliefs are shaped, how failure contributes to everyday decisions and the way we approach life. How we actually let past events dictate how we respond to things or more importantly how we show up when its time to perform. Then I realized, there is a way, a powerful way, to not let things hold us back, to move forward and be more focused, more mentally tough and have the proper mindset needed to succeed and push us to places we didn't know we could get to. I realized these powerful tools absolutely can be the difference maker with young athletes as there is so many outside forces, experiences and pressure that can have an effect on their mindset when performing on their field of play.
Since my very personal struggle, it has been a powerful journey for me. I began researching, writing, sharing my experiences, coaching, speaking and advising on the power of beliefs. mindset, mental toughness and performance. I began working with professionals in the corporate world, athletes and entrepreneurs looking for mindset and performance training. I developed a coaching system that helped countless individuals.
One day, I asked myself who I absolutely loved helping most of all the people I had worked with. My answer was simple, it was young athletes! As a former athlete, and current coach, I really understand what it takes to be successful and a huge part of that is the mental game. So, I made some tweaks in my coaching program to specifically focus on young athletes looking to become better at their craft, strengthening their mindset and reaching their peak performance. And the results have been tremendous! Working with individuals, teams and sports organizations, it has been awesome seeing the benefits to athletes who put into place the lessons I teach.
Working with hundreds and hundreds of young athletes, I am a firm believer that mindset and mental toughness will take them to heights they never thought possible. Not only have I seen it with those I have worked with, but I have used the same tools in my life to lift me up from the darkest of places to perform at a high level at the things I do in life.
I am committed to impacting young athletes and showing them just how capable they are using proven tools to change their mindset, approach their respective sports with confidence and control and become mentally tougher than they ever thought possible. No longer will they be stuck with their ordinary performances, my mission is to make sure they show up to perform extraordinarily, not only in sport, but in life!
I always dreamed BIG in sports when I was young. I always cared deeply for people and the relationships in my life and wanted to make a positive impact especially on young athletes, who I have always loved to coach and work with.
I was a goofy looking kid, skinny, tall at 6'7, acne and dealt a lot with bullies and being made fun of.
Due to this, I put my energy into sports. I worked my hardest at being the best athlete I could be as a kid, eventually earning a college scholarship and becoming an All American Basketball Player.
Being an athlete taught me a lot about just how important it was to prepare mentally and physically to reach my peak performance. I realized that the mental aspect of sports carried a much heavier weight than I even knew at the time. I even look back today and realize that, although I was a successful athlete, I had weaknesses that really held me back, all that could have been solved with some mindset training or coaching.
It wasn't until I went through a very personal struggle, that I realized exactly how critical mental toughness and the proper mindset really is.
You see, I became a business professional soon after my playing career ended. I continued coaching and participating in sports but my passion was now in the business world and taking care of my family. However, after a few bad business deals and one of the worst recessions this country has ever seen, I lost everything.
I was broke, declaring bankruptcy, trying to find a new career in a full blown recession and my thoughts and mind started going into a very depressed and hopeless state. I let outside factors control everything that I was thinking. I couldn't comprehend how this happened and how I was going to get out of it. I was slowly sinking into a depression and my mindset began to shift to very dangerous place. Soon after, I found myself in legal trouble for something I didn't do and I watched my former business partners and friends make sure the fingers were pointed at me to take the blame.
Not only was I dealing with the loss of business and everything I owned, I now was facing this incredible situation and it completely devastated me. Everything that I once believed was important and what I stood for, was now in question. I never realized how damaging it could be when you stop believing in yourself and you start to let past events dictate your performance. When I reached my darkest point, I realized I needed to change, I needed to strengthen my mindset and I needed to declare the fact that I was not going to continue to perform the way I was any longer. I stood up, in my bedroom, and just screamed at the top of my lungs.
I began to research just how powerful the mind is. How beliefs are shaped, how failure contributes to everyday decisions and the way we approach life. How we actually let past events dictate how we respond to things or more importantly how we show up when its time to perform. Then I realized, there is a way, a powerful way, to not let things hold us back, to move forward and be more focused, more mentally tough and have the proper mindset needed to succeed and push us to places we didn't know we could get to. I realized these powerful tools absolutely can be the difference maker with young athletes as there is so many outside forces, experiences and pressure that can have an effect on their mindset when performing on their field of play.
Since my very personal struggle, it has been a powerful journey for me. I began researching, writing, sharing my experiences, coaching, speaking and advising on the power of beliefs. mindset, mental toughness and performance. I began working with professionals in the corporate world, athletes and entrepreneurs looking for mindset and performance training. I developed a coaching system that helped countless individuals.
One day, I asked myself who I absolutely loved helping most of all the people I had worked with. My answer was simple, it was young athletes! As a former athlete, and current coach, I really understand what it takes to be successful and a huge part of that is the mental game. So, I made some tweaks in my coaching program to specifically focus on young athletes looking to become better at their craft, strengthening their mindset and reaching their peak performance. And the results have been tremendous! Working with individuals, teams and sports organizations, it has been awesome seeing the benefits to athletes who put into place the lessons I teach.
Working with hundreds and hundreds of young athletes, I am a firm believer that mindset and mental toughness will take them to heights they never thought possible. Not only have I seen it with those I have worked with, but I have used the same tools in my life to lift me up from the darkest of places to perform at a high level at the things I do in life.
I am committed to impacting young athletes and showing them just how capable they are using proven tools to change their mindset, approach their respective sports with confidence and control and become mentally tougher than they ever thought possible. No longer will they be stuck with their ordinary performances, my mission is to make sure they show up to perform extraordinarily, not only in sport, but in life!