“Psychologist Justin Anderson of Premier Sports Psychology [sic] in Edina has worked with professional and Olympic teams as well as the University of Minnesota’s athletics department. Ethical guidelines preclude him from discussing his work with specific clients, but he shared the general goals of team-building initiatives and leadership training.
‘More and more data has come out about how can teams get more of a competitive advantage,” Anderson said. “Well, it comes through having a healthy team culture.’
Anderson’s general prescription is to instruct a solid group of leaders. Too many teams, he said, leave leadership to seniority, making it a learn-from-your-elders situation. That way, leadership styles — whether weak or strong — perpetuate within a program.
‘Those guys aren’t getting any leadership training,’ Anderson said. ‘There is not a lot of experience going into that.’
Anderson said sports psychologists try to incorporate theories and applications on how to listen, motivate, connect and communicate in respectful ways.
‘What they found is, if you do that, and you do it well and get people on board with that, the culture moves toward the leadership,’ Anderson said.”
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