You’ve seen those athletes who put in the work, but still lack confidence …

• Hours in the cages.
• Drills on their own time.
• Strength training.
• Film study.

No one would look at their effort and say they’re not committed.

But perhaps you’ve also seen the times when there’s a gap between the work these athletes are putting in and the belief they have in themselves when it’s time to perform.

Their skills are there.
Their preparation is solid.

But their confidence doesn’t match their capability …
and it shows up in inconsistent performances that don’t reflect what they’re actually capable of.

If you’ve got an athlete who’s grinding but still struggling with self-belief, you’re not alone. And the solution isn’t more reps or more motivation. It’s a skill we’re simply not teaching.

Most young athletes are trained to:

• fix mistakes
• correct flawed technique
• work harder
• rehash what went wrong after a game

Very few are taught how to:

• notice patterns
• recognize progress mid-process (not just when game day accomplishments happen)
• solidify what IS working
• build confidence from evidence, not from “motivation” or hype

Why the traditional approach UNDERMINES confidence
Here’s the problem with the “fix what’s broken” approach: when athletes spend most of their mental energy identifying flaws and rehashing mistakes, their brain gets really good at one thing, spotting what’s wrong. They become expert critics of their own performance (or of themselves, not just their performance), but they’re under-developed in the skill of recognizing what’s right.

After a tough match or game, we ask:
“What happened out there? What went wrong? What do you need to work on?”

We mean well. We’re trying to help them improve. But what we’re actually training them to do is filter their entire performance through the lens of failure.

So they grind harder.
They add more reps.
They stay later at practice.

And yes, their skills might improve.
But their confidence? It stays fragile.

Because they’ve never been taught to notice the progress happening along the way. They’ve never learned to anchor their belief in the evidence of their own growth.

The result is an athlete who works incredibly hard but still feels like they’re never doing enough. Who can execute beautifully in practice, but doubts themselves in competition. Who needs constant reassurance because they genuinely can’t see their own progress unless someone else points it out.

The external validation trap
When athletes aren’t trained to track their own evidence of growth, they become dependent on external markers to know if they’re improving:

• Did coach praise them?
• Did their parents notice?
• Did they succeed on the field?
• What were their stats?
• Did they get playing time?

And here’s why that’s problematic: external validation is inconsistent, unreliable, and often delayed. Your athlete might have a breakthrough in technique on Tuesday, but if they don’t win on Saturday, they think the week was wasted. They might execute at a higher level than before, but if the outcome doesn’t go their way, they see it as failure. “Even though I got better, I’m still not good enough.”

They’re essentially outsourcing their confidence to circumstances they can’t fully control.

Even worse, they start performing FOR the validation rather than from their own internal drive. They need the win to feel good about themselves. They need the coach’s approval to believe they’re on the right track. They need the stats to prove they’re valuable.

This creates athletes who are anxious before competition (because their self-worth is on the line), devastated after losses (because they have no other evidence to draw from), and constantly seeking reassurance (because they genuinely can’t assess their own progress).

Internal evidence, the kind athletes gather when they track patterns, notice incremental improvements, and document what’s working, doesn’t disappear after a loss. It doesn’t depend on a coach’s mood or an umpire’s call. It’s stable, accessible, and theirs.

This season, help your athletes develop the intangible skills that separate good from great.

When athletes can track their own patterns, celebrate incremental wins, and anchor confidence in real evidence of growth, they stop relying on external validation and start building DEEPLY ROOTED belief in themselves.

The Think Like a Champ Journal gives your athletes a simple daily practice to:

• Document what’s actually working (not just what needs fixing)
• Recognize growth happening in real-time
• Build confidence from their own personal evidence
• Develop mental skills that outlast their playing days

Growth IS a WIN. Give your athlete the tool to see it, to honor it, to nurture it.

–> Grab the Think Like a Champ Journal here

 We love the visible parts of growth: the big wins, the highlight reel plays, the game-day energy. But what we rarely talk about is the quiet part …

• the pause …
• the grounding …
• the moments no one sees …
• the parts that don’t make for exciting social media posts …
• the stillness that doesn’t look like “hard work”

This is the part most people skip.
Not because they don’t care or lack discipline, but because it doesn’t feel “productive.” It’s not as cool or exciting as the newest tool, the elite training program, or the highly revered coach.

It’s just … you.
Time for yourself.
Time to reflect.
Time to process.
Time no one cheers on.
Time that isn’t part of the latest trend.
But it’s also the time that transforms you.

Because here’s the truth: If you skip this part, this foundation, the grounding …
you build your success on shaky soil.

If you avoid the quiet, you stay addicted to the noise.
If you only train what others can see, you never develop the strength that lasts.

The pause, the stillness, the grounding is the least glamorous phase of growth, but it’s one of the most essential. It’s where wisdom sinks in. Where clarity settles. Where everything you’ve practiced has the chance to integrate and become part of you.

It’s what turns effort into excellence.
It’s what makes your growth sustainable.

So if your progress feels slow right now, take heart.
Maybe you’re not behind at all.
Maybe you’re just deepening your roots.

Keep showing up for the work no one sees.
That’s where the real transformation begins.

Need to add this success habit to your day?
Start quick with our simple worksheets.
Available via instant download.

Dive deeper with our journals.
Journals typically take 7-10 business days to arrive.

I don’t believe in “coincidences.”
Which is why it was so cool that this post by The Kū Project showed up right after I updated my About Page with our approach, The Grounding Place.

Before growth, there’s grounding.
Before strength, there’s stillness.
Before the rise, there are roots.

In a world that never stops talking, we build space to listen.
Athletes, parents, and leaders are flooded with instruction and information every day …

• what to do
• how to think
• who to be

And it can be so easy to get lost in the noise. But true growth doesn’t come from more effort or force. It comes from integration, from giving your experiences and all the input you take IN all day long time to take root.

Root Before You Rise

The best athletes don’t just train harder. They grow deeper.
They know that consistency isn’t built in the chaos or even deep in the grind, but in the calm between reps. They understand that before you can level up, you have to root yourself … in values, in breath, in purpose.

When you ground before you grow, you become unshakeable.
Your performance stops depending on hype or adrenaline and starts flowing from something steadier, something that comes from within.

As the Kū Project says, “The deeper the roots, the stronger the rise.”
It’s not about rushing your season or chasing every bright new shiny training object or strategy.
It’s about grounding first, about planting roots deep enough that when it’s time to rise, you can do it with strength that lasts.

The Pause That Powers Performance

Our journals and reflection tools are designed for this very pause: a grounding place where experience can settle, where wisdom can take root, and where confidence can grow. These tools are not about adding more noise or contributing to the information overload; they’re about restoring rhythm between action and awareness, striving and stillness, growth and recovery.

Because real success doesn’t come from being “on” all the time.
It’s about having the range, the capacity to move between intensity and rest, focus and reflection, effort and ease.

Why It Matters

Look, we know that external motivation fades fast.
What sustains athletes (and the adults who lead them) is inner stability, knowing who you are beneath the pressure.

Athletes need space to breathe …
Space to process …
Space to remember who they are and why they started.

And honestly, so do parents, coaches, and leaders.
We all need a grounding place, a space to pause, to remember what matters, and to let everything we learn sink in deep.

That’s the heart behind The Grounding Place:
Our journals and worksheets take you there. Simple, meaningful tools that help you pause long enough for your growth to compound, for your wisdom to surface, and for your strength to rise naturally, not from force, but from alignment.

An Invitation

Wherever you are in your season, player, parent, coach, or leader …
may this be your reminder:

Stand tall in your values, your breath, and your purpose.
Root before you rise.
There’s no need to rush.
Stay grounded.
Keep showing up for yourself, for your family, for your team, and for your community.

Welcome to The Grounding Place.

Get started today with our worksheets.
Available via instant download.

Dive in with your journals.
Journals typically take about 7-10 business days to arrive.

You’ve heard about strength, speed, endurance, and skill.
But there’s another kind of capacity that separates athletes who thrive from those who burn out.

It’s called range.
No, not the amount of ground you can cover on the field.
RANGE is the ability of your nervous system to handle intensity AND recovery.

What Range Really Means

Your body has two main “gears”:

• Sympathetic activation: the go mode.
  It’s focus, effort, adrenaline, alertness, drive.
• Parasympathetic restoration: the calm mode.
  It’s rest, digestion, healing, reflection, sleep.

A healthy nervous system can move smoothly between both.
That movement, the oscillation between activation and restoration, is what builds range.
Range doesn’t mean staying calm all the time.
It means having the capacity to return to calm when you’ve been stretched.

It’s what lets you perform hard without frying your circuits and burning out.

The Science Behind It

Neuroscience and performance psychology both show that growth happens in the recovery loop, not just during exertion.
Muscles get stronger between workouts.
Memory consolidates between study sessions.
Emotional regulation improves between competitions.

But most student athletes (and let’s be honest, most adults too) spend almost all day in activation.

• Practice.
• Games.
• School.
• Homework.
• Social pressure.
• Screens.

Their nervous systems rarely get a full exhale.

Over time, that constant “on” state leads to fatigue, irritability, anxiety, and inconsistent performance, not because they’re weak, but because their systems have lost range.

Why Recovery Isn’t Optional

Imagine a car that can accelerate but never downshift.
That’s what happens to an overactivated nervous system: the engine overheats, no matter how good the driver is.

When you teach athletes to recover, to breathe, reflect, decompress … you’re not being “soft.”
You’re helping them build range, which is the real foundation for sustainable high level performance.

And the same goes for high-performing adults who fill every minute of their calendar.
Without intentional white space, the mind loses flexibility and creativity, just like muscles lose mobility without stretching.

The Role of Reflection

Here’s where our journals and worksheets come in.
They’re not another task or “mental drill.”
They’re built to activate the parasympathetic side of the system, the calm, restorative state where integration happens.

When an athlete writes about their day, names what worked for them, or takes a gratitude minute, they’re teaching their body that it’s safe to rest and recover.

When a busy adult pauses to check in with a reflection page instead of the next notification, they’re practicing recovery in real time.

Each page is a mini reset for the nervous system, a grounding place between effort and expectation.

The Takeaway

True performance isn’t about being “on” all the time.
It’s about developing the range to move between go and grow, push and pause, activation and recovery.

So when we say, “Growth lives in rhythm, not in constant motion,” we mean it literally.

And every time you pick up one of our journals or worksheets , you’re not just reflecting …
you’re expanding your range.

Because when you can recover as well as you train and compete:

• your success becomes sustainable
• every challenge becomes fuel for growth
• and you don’t just perform well, you live well through the demands of every season

A little over a month ago, I ordered myself an Oura ring.
The primary reason was to lower EMF exposure from wearing an Apple Watch all day.

One thing I found interesting was that the “Activity” score it gives me daily also takes recovery into account. So it’s not just about how active I am or how many calories I burn or how many steps I take, but it’s also about how well I recover as well.

Which is even more interesting considering the last two blogs posts I’ve shared here and here.

The Oura Ring (and other recovery-tracking tools) quietly prove that rest isn’t the absence of performance; it’s part of it.

When Oura folds recovery into the Activity Score, it’s acknowledging a few key biological truths:

1. Growth happens in oscillation.
   Muscles, neurons, and even emotional resilience strengthen in the cycle of stress → recovery → adaptation.
   
   Push without recovery, and your system breaks down. Pair them together and your system upgrades.
   
2. The nervous system needs contrast.
   Periods of sympathetic activation (focus, exertion) followed by parasympathetic restoration (sleep, calm) build range.
   
   Range is what lets you handle intensity without frying your circuits.
   
3. Integration is a physiological event.
   During rest, your body literally consolidates learning, repairs tissue, re-balances hormones, and locks in gains.
   
   So recovery isn’t really “downtime.” It’s gain time for your cells and brain.

The same rhythm applies spiritually and psychologically: effort and surrender, expression and reflection, doing and being.

That’s why our journals are such a game changer.
You get an intentional recovery loop for your mind, body, and soul <3

Most people stay stuck in a loop of activation … constantly pushing, striving, and “doing.”
They confuse motion with progress.

But the ones who intentionally build recovery into their rhythm, the ones who take the time to pause, reflect, and reset, are the ones whose growth compounds.

Because when you integrate what you’re learning instead of just rushing to the next thing, your energy becomes more efficient, your decisions stronger, and your confidence steadier.

That’s “The Grounding Place“ edge.
The one most people overlook because it doesn’t look like “the grind.”

Our journals and worksheets give you that edge, a built-in system to integrate, reset, recalibrate, and grow resilience from the inside out.

It’s not just “slowing down.”
It’s strategic recovery.
It’s slowing down to speed up.
And it’s how you stay in the game longer, stronger, sharper, and more grounded (aka solid, steady, and consistent) than ever.

Something I’ve observed recently …
High performers, both on the field and in business, often treat “white space” as optional.
They treat the pause (or stillness/time to slow down) as something they’ll “get to” when they can … after the next deadline, practice, tournament, or project … which rarely ever happens.

But the brain and body don’t grow in output, they grow in oscillation (the natural rhythm between activation and recovery). In other words, the brain and body grow in the rhythm between work and intentional recovery.

Neuroscience and performance psychology both confirm this:

• When the mind has space, the default mode network connects dots that hustle alone can’t.
• Short breaks improve accuracy, creativity, and decision-making.
• Reflection transforms experience into insight, the true mark of mastery.

Without that time and space, adults do what overtrained athletes do: operate on adrenaline, lose precision, and call it productivity.

That’s why our journals and worksheets work for anyone who performs under pressure.
These tools build a rhythm of space, time, and reflection into already full lives. They provide a few minutes to recalibrate focus, energy, and perspective.

Our journals and worksheets aren’t just another task to do, or added information to take in, they’re the pause that lets everything else start working again.

Because whether you’re leading a team, a company, or a household, your edge doesn’t come from pushing harder, it comes from knowing when to slow down and recover.
The real advantage isn’t endless hustle. It’s rhythm that creates room for oscillation.

And that rhythm is what allows you to not only out-work everyone else, but to do so more intentionally, more efficiently, and more wisely WITHOUT burning yourself out.

The science of reflection …
and the heart behind our journals <3

When you stop to think about it, all day long, student-athletes are told what to do and how to do it. Teachers, coaches, parents, and even teammates pour in constant information and instruction. It’s so easy to get lost in what everyone else says or thinks or tells you you “need to” or “should” do.

On top of that, the human brain can only grow so much while in “taking in” mode.
The brain needs time to settle, connect, and make sense of what it’s learned.

Neuroscientists call this time to process the default-mode network.
It’s the system that turns on when the mind is quiet.
That’s when memories organize, lessons stick, and creativity sparks.
It is in those in-between moments, while doodling, daydreaming, or journaling, that the brain files experience into understanding.

Without that pause, information just piles up … information overload.
With the pause, wisdom starts to form.

Psychologists have found that kids who get short, unstructured breaks during the day …

• time to reflect
• time to be “bored”
• time to notice how they feel

… become more coachable, more emotionally steady, and more self-motivated.
Their nervous system learns to recover from stress instead of staying in constant “go” mode.

That’s what our journals and reflection sheets are designed to do.
They don’t add more information, instructions, noise or rules.
They create breathing room, a grounding space where student-athletes can:

• decompress after the game
• process what went well and what didn’t
• rebuild confidence
• develop self awareness so they can reflect and correct
• and reconnect with who they are, their why, and what works well for them

Because real growth doesn’t stick during the grind.
Real growth happens in the pause that creates the space you need for everything you’ve experienced and practiced finally take root.

Give yourself and your student-athletes that time and space to GROW.

Start simple with our worksheets.
Dive in with our journals.

Want personalized support with this?
Limited spots available for “Stacie In Your Corner.” A one-on-one asynchronous space where you get direct access to me for guidance as you navigate coaching, parenting, competing, or leading in our high-pressure world.

Contact me for more info HERE
Try it for a week HERE
Secure your spot here –> Enroll Now

Every athlete is a HUMAN BEING first.
It’s important that we remember that.

It’s also important that they know that.
Who they are behind or beyond the jersey matters.
Understanding their own identity outside the game, or even outside of social media, matters now more than ever.

We see too many young athletes (or even recently “retired” athletes) lost amidst the noise and confusion of external validation. And many student-athletes, whether we intend for them to or not, become dependent on it as they go throughout their career. After all, they’re practically bombarded with external validation all throughout their childhood. Grades, scores, hits, stats, wins … all coming from sources outside themselves.

But there comes a time when all of that ends.
Or a time when things aren’t going great and none of those things are “impressive” enough for people to recognize, acknowledge, praise or reward them for. And where does that leave them?

Without a strong sense of self outside of all those external metrics and rewards, without a strong sense of self that comes from within, comes from understanding and knowing of who they are before and outside of all of that, it can be a very disorienting and challenging experience when those external pats on the back suddenly go away. When no one is “seeing” your daily efforts, your growth, your progress. When everything you do is treated as “normal” instead of being seen as “awesome.” And not everyone handles that radical change well. Not everyone finds their football quickly, even if they eventually do.

So how do we combat that?
How do we give them a solid foundation they can stand upon and build from no matter what?
This free Identity Prompt Pack is a great place to start.

It includes the following sections:

• Pre-Work: Start with What Matters
• Section 1: Discover My Identity
• Section 2: Discover My Core Values
• Section 3: Discover My Personal Mission
• Section 4: Discover Who I Am Outside My Sport
• Section 5: Discover My Greatest Assets
• Optional Wrap-Up Reflection

In all honesty, it’s great for parents and coaches too
It’s totally free. You can grab it here.
You’re welcome to share it, download it, give it to others, pass it on as you see fit.
It’s a meaningful exercise you can go through with your athlete(s) too.
No opt-in or email required, just click here and enjoy <3

Print Friendly Version – Click Here

It’s easy to get distracted by …

circumstances (loses, failures, mistakes)
feelings (doubt, worry, confusion, overwhelm)
outside noise (what everyone else says or thinks)

And there a lot of tools, people, resources, training, strategies that will PUSH you past all that.

But that’s not what you’re here for.
You’re here to take a deep breath.

To rest.
To reset.
To recenter.
To recalibrate.
To REMEMBER …

Who you are.
What you’re meant to be.
What you’re meant to do.
Why you’re meant to do it.
And HOW you’re meant to do it.

Not what and how everyone else says to.
Not what or WHY everyone else says you should.

But who, what, why, and how YOU are meant do be and do it.

And all of the journals, the worksheets, the prompt packs that have been published this year were created to bring you back to that. To bring you back to YOU. Your truth. Your reasons. Your motivations. Your inspirations. Your goals. Your wins. Your strengths. Your peace. Your YES, I can. And I will.

They help you get back on track when others, or circumstances, or doubts, or worries pull you off. When everything around you is telling your mind that you’re failing, or you’re not good enough, or your doing it “wrong,” or you can’t “win” like that …

Because so much of that is a lie.

It’s time to cut through all that noise.
It’s time to release beliefs that aren’t yours to carry.
It’s time to quiet all the doubts, all the fears, all the why you can’ts …

And get back to what actually matters.
Get back to what truly makes sense for you, drives you, is right for you.

Because only when you are being true to you can you shine brightest.
Sometimes the one dulling our own shine is us …

Because we are starting to believe the doubts and the fears and the lies everything around us is telling us.

Reset.
Recenter.
Recalibrate.

Do it daily.

Because the doubts, if they’ve been getting in the way, will continue to come up daily. That’s very common. You’re not the only one. The “evidence” that you “can’t” do it will be put in front of you daily. The naysayers will speak up daily. But those are distractions from what you are truly capable of. Don’t let them win.

Come back to YOUR truth every single day.
Whether is through a journal …
A worksheet …
A prompt pack …
Prayer …
Or even some other tool that you get from somewhere else …

Whatever it is that works for you, use it. Do it. Be consistent with it.

If my journals and/or worksheets are for you, you will get a disproportionate benefit using it.
They’re simple. They’re easy to use. They’re convenient … and yet, so very powerful when you actually dive in to your time with it.

If you need a reset, they may be just what you’re looking for

StacieMahoe.com –> Shop

When you grow up as a student-athlete,
you don’t realize how much external validation is baked into your everyday life.

Every week there’s a scoreboard.
Every season has stats.
Every semester brings report cards.
Every year offers a new level to rise to.

You’re constantly surrounded by milestones that get noticed by coaches, teachers, teammates, parents, friends, and fans.

It’s not that anyone means to make you dependent on recognition.
It’s just part of the system …
And …
It’s great to feel seen.
It’s great to feel valued.
It’s great to be acknowledged for all the hard work you put in.

But here’s what no one talks about enough …

When that system goes away, when you’re no longer a student-athlete, when the games stop and the grades stop and the trophies stop … it can be unsettling.

Life gets … quiet.

Even if you’re doing well as an adult working hard, showing up, figuring things out, learning and growing the recognition and applause becomes much less frequent. Especially when most of that stuff is “expected” of adults. Everyone is doing it. It’s no longer “special” or clap worthy, even if you’re learning bigger things and growing at a faster pace and putting yourself in far more uncomfortable situations to do so than you did as a student-athlete.

There are no more stat sheets.
No more game days.
Far less built-in celebration of your effort or growth.
And what is built in, is often only seen within the circle in which it’s built.
Which can be very different from your sports experience where there is a lot more visibility of game performance, your stats, and so on.

And that difference between adult life and your past sports life can leave you searching.
Searching for the next “thing” to achieve, the next version of success to chase.
Not because it’s what your soul is calling for,
but because part of you misses being seen.
Part of you is starting to feel invisible, unimportant, insignificant.
After an entire childhood of the opposite.

And here’s where it gets real:

Some of your greatest growth after sports won’t come with a medal or title or Instagram-worthy moment.

It’ll come quietly through learning, through healing, through reflection, through shifts in how you think, respond, choose, love, lead.

You might be evolving in massive ways!

And yet, no one’s cheering.
No one’s watching.
Sometimes, no one even knows.

That’s why it matters so much to be able to recognize it yourself.
To notice your own growth and progress.
To see what’s changing on the inside even if it’s not always evident on the outside yet.
To honor the courage it takes to keep becoming, even if only God knows.

Because adult life won’t always give you external recognition for your emotional growth, your integrity, your inner breakthroughs, your boundaries, your healing.

But that doesn’t mean it doesn’t matter.

It matters so much more than you may be giving yourself credit for.
You’re not just becoming someone who achieves.
You’re becoming someone who’s rooted in what matters.
Someone who knows who they are, even when no one else is clapping.

That’s why I care so much about the inner work.

Because at some point, every high-achiever faces this question:
Can you keep showing up, growing, healing, leading … even when there’s no one there to cheer you on along the way. Even if “all you’re doing” is living a “usual” adult life with a job, with promotions, with finally getting your own space, buying your own car, paying your own bills, making your own investments, building your relationships, raising your own children, maybe even starting or running a business, etc, etc, etc.

The thing is when the applause fades,
your own voice becomes the one you hear the most.

And that voice, your personal leadership, your grounded center, your Inside Out OS …
Needs to be strong.
Steady.
Kind.
Anchored.

So if you’ve been wondering why this growth work matters, especially after sports…

This is why.

Because when the adulting begins, so many former athletes feel broken or lost or less than or like they’re not doing or being enough when none of that is true. 

They’re just learning how to lead themselves well now …
not for external validation, but for their own truth and their own growth and their own healing and their own personal development.

And that kind of personal leadership?
Rooted in inner strength, forged in fire …
It changes everything.

I’m beginning to understand why people take a break from Facebook from time to time. They’re a lot of complaining and grumbling and negativity and overall dissatisfaction going on.

Learn how to keep scrolling and/or curate your feed.

In other words …

• Use that snooze button.
• Unfollow people.
• Tell FB what you do or do not want to see more of when given the chance.
• Leave groups that no longer serve you or fit the flow you want to be in on a daily basis.
• FOLLOW (or turn notifications on for) the people/groups who share the kind of content you want to see so that you’re taking in messages that inspire you rather than deplete you, that lift you up rather than put you into a mood for frustration or irritation.

Also, you get to decide when you get on or get off FB. If you open it up and immediately you’re feeling more tension or frustration or irritation, etc, close the app. Go do something else.

Turn your attention to something else more worth your time, attention, and energy.

Too often we are giving our time, attention, and energy to things out of habit instead of on purpose or with intention.

In the last few days, I’ve noticed myself opening up IG or FB just out of habit. Not because I had any reason, or even desire, to go there. So I immediately shut it back down. I no longer want to initiate time there mindlessly or out of habit more than out of purpose.

Years ago, I turned off notifications for FB. So it’s not notifying me every time something happens. I come to it when I decide to come to it, not when it summons me through a notification or via a number in a red circle starting at me on my phone screen. All of that has been turned off for me otherwise my phone would be going on constantly. I don’t want that. It disturbs my peace and flow so I opted out of that.

You can do that with any app you would like to. I’m about to do it with my messenger app too. I previously had my notifications on for messenger because I used to get time sensitive business communication through messenger, but I no longer do. So that notification can also be turned off.

You may even want to go through your phone and delete apps you no longer need or use to tidy up your phone screens. Make it less overwhelming to look at. Simplify it so your mind doesn’t have to process all that every time you look at your phone

What can you do today to simplify and declutter your technological patterns?
How can you invest your time, energy, and attention more intentionally?

Super excited to share this with you today!

Have you ever felt like you were right on the verge of a breakthrough? Like your next level was right around the corner? And it’s so dang close you can feel it, but something’s slowing you down or keeping you from launching right into where you know you can be?

This Next Level worksheet was made just for you.
It includes 5 simple prompts to help you breakthrough to that next level!
Plus, you get some simple “what’s next” steps so you can keep moving forward to where you want to go.

And, yes, this worksheet is 100% free. No email required!
You can download it and start using it today!

It’s time for you to break through.
Grab your copy here.

A piece of the story behind our journals, worksheets, and prompt packs … and another reason why I create them …

It’s because every major positive, game changing, life changing transformation I’ve experienced began with a reframe …
A simple shift …
A different way of looking at things …
a different way to think about a situation …
a different way of seeing circumstances, experiences, or processes in a new way.

The rest,
the unstoppable momentum of that transformation as it rolled through my life and changed everything … was built through intention.

With these journals, with these worksheets, with these prompt packs,
I’m giving you a way …
I’m giving you the space …
I’m giving you tools …
to help you experience that same kind of transformation.

Space for simple shifts.
Space for intention.
Space for powerful transformation.
It’s all there for you.

We’re not just talking about an “uplevel,”
but a catapult to a whole new realm you didn’t even realized existed.

We’re talking about new ways of doing things, looking at things, thinking about things that exponentially compound your results. A way to get more bang for your buck without relying on “just doing more,” especially not when you’re already burning the candle at both ends and honestly don’t know how much more you can do, pack into your schedule, or have to give.

I want you to experience shifts that completely change the game for you,
that completely change life for you.

I know what happens when someone sees themselves, or their situation, with fresh eyes.
I’ve lived that moment. I enjoy the benefits of living those moments every single day.
And I want to give you ways to live it and experience it and enjoy it too.

All that from a journal?
All that from a few questions?
All that from digging into and writing out what’s on your mind, in your heart, in your soul?

Yes … and …
This is not about giving you all the answers or telling you what to do.
It’s about giving you the time, space, and process to release the best of you, the best for you.

No, this is not about “fixing” you.
It’s about freeing you …
from old patterns,
from false narratives,
from surface-level thinking that doesn’t serve you.

It is about so much more than “journaling.”
Or “just writing things down.”

It’s about helping you see what’s already within you.
It’s about helping you notice and pay attention to what actually matters …
instead of getting distracted by all the noise around you.
It’s about helping you lead yourself well from the inside out …
rather than constantly living in, and dealing with, doubt.

It’s about rewriting your story, and the story you’re telling yourself.

It’s not necessarily about doing more.
It’s about helping you see differently, lead yourself differently.

Because once you see new possibilities?
You can’t unsee them.

And that’s where real change begins ...
Game changing.
Life changing.
Wow! What-the-heck-has -gotten-into-you changing.

One of the best parts?
The peace you feel in the process.
Saying goodbye to being crushed under pressure of expectation, of what everyone else is doing, of trying to be or keep up with what you were never meant to be or keep up with.
The quiet confidence, the certainty, the faith, the trust that comes from finally walking your own path, traveling your own journey, and embracing the timing and unfolding of it all.

Magical doesn’t even begin to describe the experience of choosing this path, of choosing your path.

Start with journals here
OR
Start with simple worksheets/prompts here

I can’t wait to see you win!

People often say, “Choose your words wisely.”

But is it just a matter of choosing words wisely or USING them wisely too?

What if the words you use, along with the belief behind them, have the power to shape your reality?

Are you speaking life or not?
Are you speaking sickness or are you speaking health?
Are you speaking belief or are you speaking doubt?
Are you speaking faith or are you speaking worry?
Are you speaking success or are you speaking defeat?
Are you speaking encouragement or are you speaking discouragement?

Whether you intend to or not, you are speaking things into existence in your life.
Can you choose and use your words more wisely than you currently tend to?

I saw this post by @seaneinhaus the other day and the first thing that came to my mind was …
THIS! This is why I do what I do with the journals, with the worksheets, and with the simple prompt series that I just created for you.

Because in this era of so much information and data and analytics, with access to so many tools and tactics and strategies and bright shiny objects in front of us on any given day, we can get distracted by looking for solutions all around us, outside of us.

We can also get caught up in checking to see if we’re doing what everyone else is doing so we don’t fall behind.

But what if THAT’s what causes you to fall behind? Because since when does being like everyone else get you ahead? Since when does constantly looking outside yourself get you to where YOU want to go?

Not only that, but in all that external searching, you soon find yourself disconnected from the unique power and gifts that flow from within you.

And every journal, every worksheet, every framework, every e-book I create is calling you back to that. Is giving you a way to return to that, to reconnect to that, to stay rooted in that.

So you don’t lose YOURSELF and what makes you uniquely, wonderfully, and powerfully you in the process of chasing excellence. Because your excellence, your best, needs to include YOU in it.

I’ve been dropping new resources in the Facebook group all week. If you haven’t seen that yet, read to the end of this post to see what’s been shared.

Just popped a new Confidence Builder Pack of worksheets over at staciemahoe.gumroad.com.

That pack includes 5 worksheets with 5 simple prompts each to help you/your athletes get stronger from the inside out. Plus, a bonus worksheet to help you learn more about yourself from perspectives you might not have considered before.

And I’ve got more Simple Prompt Packs coming for you soon.
So stay tuned

Other resources published this week …

The Inside Out OS e-book
The Personal Leadership Framework that Powers Your Success
If you’ve ever questioned your own coaching philosophy, lost sleep over decisions you’ve made, or felt the pressure to lead your team well while silently second guessing yourself?
This e-book is for you.
It offers a fresh perspective on leadership that doesn’t begin with “strategies.” It begins with you. And it helps you develop into a stronger, more solid leader from the inside out.
Let this book be your reset. Let it remind you who you are and what’s possible when you lead with intention, conviction, and care.

Fastpitch Softball Coaching Tips from A to Z e-book
free for kindle unlimited users
Whether you’re stepping into your first season or have years of experience under your belt, this book meets you right where you are … with encouragement and practical leadership strategies every coach can use.

Upgrade Your Team OS
new resource added to the Fastpitch Fam Member Area
It’s more than just strategy and skill—it’s about the environment, communication, culture, and habits that shape how your team functions and performs, both under pressure and in everyday practice. This guide includes simple questions that allow you to build and/or develop your TEAM Operating System. At the end of this guide, you’ll also find simple questions to help you spot check or audit your system to see where it needs updates or patches.

—

Want to stay up to date with all the new tools and resources coming out this year?
Become a VIP member and get all the goods delivered straight to your inbox.
Sign up is free. Claim your spot at StacieMahoe.com/vip.

Not everybody is meant to be a power hitter or a slapper or a pitcher or a catcher for that matter.

Yet, every single person on a team matters. YOU matter!

• What do *you* bring to the table?
• What are your talents?
• What are your strengths?
• What are your gifts?
• What do you do better than anyone else?

Everyone has something they bring, something they are better than anyone else at.

Bring that.
Do that.
BE that.
Each and every day.
Bring YOU.
BE YOU.

Because nobody needs a team full of short stops.
So, stop trying to be someone else.
Stop trying to be something you were never meant to be.

Recognize what *you* are great at and double down on that over and over and over again. Because your team needs YOU.

This doesn’t only apply to softball or sports teams either.

Our world needs you.
Bring your gifts.
Bring your light.
Bring your strengths.
Bring your HEART.

Together we can do so much more …
but it’s time to “get in the game” and stop playing small.

Step up.
Speak up.
“Play” BIG.
And LIVE with your whole heart <3

Fastpitch Fam!
Great news

A new journal is coming out for you soon, but right now, you can start using the journal pages in this free downloadable format.

The daily and weekly pages are there for you to print off and use. The actual hard copy version will also have a month end evaluation and growth plan page as well.

But for now, you can start using these journal pages to help your athlete(s) develop a championship mindset, master their skills, and optimize performance through daily reflection and weekly check-ins.

Champions track their progress, make adjustments, and execute with intensity.

These journal pages help you develop those habits day in and day out. Now, this journal and these pages require more commitment than the other journals we have. But that’s why this one is called the Elite Performance Journal.

It’s designed for competitive athletes focused on growth, execution, and domination.

Grab your free copy of these journal pages HERE

Yes, winning is great.
Results and outcomes are awesome.
That’s why we celebrate them.

But the growth, and the connections, and the resilience built along the way is priceless! The JOURNEY is priceless.

That’s the real flex!

• How much did you learn?
• How much did you grow?
• How many relationships did you build?
• How many meaningful memories did you make?
• How much did you face challenges, doubt, adversity and keep . on . going?

What else would you add to this list?
What else do you value about the journey?

Interestingly enough, that’s where this message begins.
Sometimes, my heart wants to write and share with you, but my mind doesn’t know what to write.

This is one of those times.

I want to write a message to you.
I’d love to have a conversation with you.
But I don’t know what to say.

Which is funny because other times someone can ask me a question and a whole page of response comes out … and it all usually circles back to one thing, but I go deep on that one thing and added reasons why and all kind of extra, backup info, when it still often comes down to one main thing.

Any-who … I may not know what to write today, but I DO know this …

1. My wish is for you to FEEL supported.
2. May you also FEEL encouraged today.
3. I want you to KNOW someone believes in you.
4. I hope you come to believe, in every fiber of your being, that you are more capable than you know.
5. You ARE worth it. Whatever it is … you’re worth it. Because you are. Because you’re meant to go for the thing you’re going after and shooting for right now.

Because you’re not done yet!

Take a moment.
Breathe in deeply.
And let it all go as you let that breath out.

Do it again.

One more time if you need to.

What new thoughts are coming to your mind right now?
What different feelings are you feeling right now?

Write it down.
Journal it out.

If you need a space to reset daily, the Gratitude Journal is a great space to do that.
It’s how I start my day every day. With gratitude.
Even I fell off the “bandwagon” for a bit, but I began to understand that process in a new way and it is now how I start every morning.

If you need a space to reflect in more positive ways … instead of letting thoughts of defeat, doubt, or discouragement fester, the Think Like a Champ is a great way to build that habit and shift those thoughts.

Because guess what? Doubt will spring back up repeatedly.
Discouragement will circle back from time to time.
Feeling defeated is human when you’ve BEEN “defeated” in some way.
But this journal gives you a chance to focus your thoughts differently.
It’s a powerful practice that I, not only practice when I journal, but practice throughout the day whenever those kinds of thoughts or feelings pop up.

You don’t have to wait until you have a journal to address them.
In fact, some of the journal prompts in there are designed to help you get to know and understand what helps you feel more at peace or more at ease in ANY moment.

Plus, Think Like a Champ has some words of encouragement sprinkled throughout the pages for you

Learn more about the journals at SoftballJournalsforAthletes.com

Enjoy !

P.S. – Seems I wrote a LOT for not knowing what to write ^.^ Sometimes, you don’t have to have all the answers, or know how it’s all going to work out, you just have to start and ask God to lead you as He blesses what it is you do <3

Games might seem to come down to ONE play, but they’re never won or lost in just one play or on just one pitch or even in just one inning.

There’s an entire game of opportunities to make plays, get outs, get hits, move runners, score runs …

If you ever lose a game that “came down to one play,” let it be a reminder to you to take no pitch, no at bat, no out, no inning for granted. Because every single one is an opportunity to help win the game.