About Cheryl McLaughlin
40+ year Sport & Human Performance Expert, Coach, Counselor and Speaker | Founder of Compete Like a Champ™
About Cheryl
Cheryl McLaughlin, PhDab, MS, is a nationally recognized performance expert, multisport coach and speaker with more than 40 years of experience working with athletes, coaches and organizations.
Her work is driven by a central question:
What do we need to know—and do—to bring out our best in competition, work and life—and stay healthy?
And how do we train our brain, nervous system and stress response to improve our performance and resilience, instead of working against us?
Known for her innovative, practical approach, Cheryl integrates insights from neuroscience, psychology and sport science to help people Train SMART—training the heart, brain, body and game together for performance and long-term health.
Her background includes Ph.D. training in Counseling and Clinical Psychology, with specialties in sport science, family systems and organizational development.
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Experiences that have shaped Cheryl’s approach:
♦️ Trained by, coached with and studied Olympic, Hall of Fame and Champion coaches—learning how the best actually train for competition
♦️ Experienced three rare, high-performing—and fun—cultures across family, college and sport
♦️ Served on sport science advisory committees with organizations such as USA Volleyball and USTA Northern California
♦️ Turned a losing college tennis program into a Top 10 nationally-ranked team—and helped shift the culture at an elite academic college to embrace both academic and athletic excellence
♦️ Learned firsthand from inventors and entrepreneurs with a “Big Grin, Go For It!” mindset and the innovation process—shaping her practical approach to training and development, innovation and problem-solving
♦️ Trained through the NTL (National Training Labs) Graduate Student Professional Development Program
♦️ Worked as a student development specialist—helping individuals learn, grow and bring out their best in challenging real-world environments
♦️ Began developing what would later become the field of sport psychology—starting as a college student
♦️ Studies turnaround specialists in sport and business—and the unusual leadership gifts of coaches and CEOs who transform the culture and rebuild teams and lives to achieve extraordinary success in a healthy, positive way
♦️ At 18, worked with gang youth outside Glasgow, Scotland during the IRA conflict—gaining early insight into resilience, environment and human behavior
♦️ Grew up in rural Montana ranch country—shaping a grounded, practical and self-reliant approach to life and performance
The (Bulleted) Story
- 40+ Years of Expertise: Nationally-known sport and human performance scientist, multi-sport coach, speaker training elite juniors, college and pros (tennis, college volleyball); inspiring over 5,000 athletes, coaches and leaders in sport, business, medicine, creative professionals, women’s leadership, health and high performance
- Multisport college and lifelong athlete (tennis, volleyball, a short stint as a too-short basketball player)
- Trained by, coaching with and studying Olympic, Hall of Fame and Champion Coaches as well as those rare “turnaround specialists” in sports and business who turned struggling teams and businesses into healthy, positive, high-performing winners
- Academic Training: College through Ph.D. specialties: Counseling and Clinical Psychology, Neuroscience, Sport Sciences, Sport Psychology, Student Development, Organizational Development, Philosophy
- Sport Science Advisory Member for USA Volleyball and USTA Northern California
- Sports: Tennis, Volleyball, Phoenix Suns, Equestrians (Hunter & Jumpers, Three-Day Eventers), Junior National Soccer, US Cycling, US Swimming, Hockey, Gymnastics, Golf
- Speaker & Consultant to sport, business and creative professionals and organizations including Stanford University, Wilson Sporting Goods, USTA and USPTA National Conventions, US Hunter Jumper Association, US Cycling, IBM, AT&T, BART, Compaq/Hewlett-Packard, Lawrence Livermore Labs
- Courses/Training/Consulting: 1-on-1 and team/group training and consulting; Designed and presented training for clubs and regional, national and high performance coaching conferences
- College Positions: Former College Counselor, Coach, Instructor, Student Development Specialist (Whitworth University, Purdue University, University of Arizona, Whitman College) and college coach (Head Coach: Women’s Tennis; Assistant Women’s Volleyball Coach)
Contact Cheryl to speak to, or work with, your athletes, teams, business, health or sport groups and organizations.
Are you Ready to Train SMART to bring out your better game on and off the court—especially at crunch time—and stay healthy?
Whether you are an athlete, coach, team or organization—here are the best ways to start:
START HERE:
Training System
Train SMART for Competition
30-Day Challenge
Learn how to train your brain, mind, body and game together—so you can play your better during competition—even at crunch time.
Coaching & Consulting
Work directly with Cheryl
Personalized coaching to identify what you want to accomplish, assess your strengths and areas for improvement, provide specific training tools and plans, and work through what’s holding you back so you can free yourself to bring out your better game on and off the court—especially when facing adversity.
Workshops & Speaking
For teams, clubs and organizations
Train SMART™ as a group and build the tools, mindset and a healthy, positive, high-performing—and fun culture—to bring out your best on and off the court.
Currently my work is via Zoom, Phone or FaceTime
You can also contact me directly here and tell me what you’re looking for and I’ll help you find the best fit.
Tell me a bit about what you are looking for.