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Conquer Anxiety & Fear in Just 6 Weeks

The Confident Competitor Academy is a 6-week course that will teach you how to trust in yourself, let go of fear & anxiety, and play freely during competition.

 
ENROLL TODAY

Are you tired of playing with anxiety and fear? Knowing you can perform better in games, but feeling like you hold yourself back when it matters most? You practice, you prepare, but somehow, game day doesn’t go as planned. Fear, doubt, and anxiety creep in, leaving you frustrated, stuck, and far from your full potential.

Imagine stepping onto the field or court without fear or anxiety. Imagine playing with true freedom, enjoying every moment, and seeing your athletic potential come to life.

The Confident Competitor Academy is designed specifically for athletes like you—those who know they have what it takes but feel trapped by fear of failure and sports performance anxiety. This 6-week course will guide you in building the mental skills you need to break free from fear and anxiety and perform confidently and freely during games.

How Fear & Anxiety Hurt Your Performance

Many athletes struggle in silence, believing they’re the only ones held back by fear of failure and sports performance anxiety. But you’re not alone. In fact, a significant number of high-performing athletes experience these same struggles. Here are just a few ways that fear of failure and sports performance anxiety will hurt your game:

1. Holding Yourself Back & Playing Safe

  • Fear of failure & sports performance anxiety can silently sabotage even the most talented athletes. Take the story of a college basketball player: in practice, he thrives, shooting effortlessly and driving to the basket with confidence. But during games, fear takes over. His focus shifts from playing freely to avoiding mistakes, triggering hesitation and timid play. Instead of calling for the ball, he holds himself back: hiding in the corner, afraid to mess up.

2. Playing to Avoid Mistakes

  • Avoidance feels safe in the moment but ultimately leaves us disappointed and ineffective. By playing to avoid failure, we may not make as many mistakes, but deep down, we know we held ourselves back. Worse, our avoidance increases the chances of mistakes, as hesitation and fear replace natural, confident play. This cycle of fear and avoidance is common but preventable. By shifting the mindset from avoidance to opportunity, athletes can break free from fear, perform naturally, and unlock their full potential—even in high-pressure moments.

3. Negative Self-Talk Takes Over

  • A single mistake can spiral into a cycle of self-criticism: “Why did I mess up? Everyone is watching. I can’t believe I missed that.” This negative self-talk feeds your anxiety & fear, making you feel even less capable, even if you’re a talented player. Instead of trusting your training, fear makes you second-guess yourself. You play it “safe” to avoid mistakes, but this cautious mindset holds you back from reaching your true potential.

4. Physical Tension and Fatigue

  • Anxiety doesn’t just stay in your mind; it affects your body too. You find yourself playing tight and stiff. Breathing becomes shallow, and energy drains faster, leaving you feeling exhausted even early in the game.
  • Fear manifests physically, impacting your speed, agility, and coordination—qualities essential for peak athletic performance. This is where you may feel like you’re playing timid or with your foot on the brake.

5. Lost Joy in Playing

  • What once brought you joy now brings dread. Fear and anxiety rob you of the fun, making your sport feel like a burden. When you’re no longer playing for enjoyment, every game feels like an uphill battle.
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Imagine Playing Free From Fear & Anxiety

What if you could play without these barriers?

What if you could experience every moment of the game, truly enjoy it, and give your best without anxiety getting in the way?

Through this 6-week program, you’ll learn to:

  • Break Free from Self-Doubt: Understand the roots of your anxiety and fear and develop mental techniques to break the cycle of fear and negativity.
  • Build Resilient Confidence: Create a powerful, positive self-image that empowers you to face challenges with composure.
  • Play with Authentic Joy: Reconnect with the love of your sport, allowing you to play naturally, without the fear of judgment or failure.

Confident Competitor Academy Outline

Week 1

Understanding the Cause of Anxiety & Fear

In week one we dive into what drives your fear and anxiety while playing. You will develop awareness as to what is really causing you to hold yourself back during games.

Week 2

Learning to Focus on What You Can Control

Once we have uncovered the main cause of anxiety and fear, we will work to shift your attention onto the process of your game and what you can control.

Week 3

Gaining Control Over Your Thoughts

Your thinking plays a major role in anxiety and fear. In week three, you will learn how to manage your thinking and use it to your advantage, instead of having it hold you back.

Week 4

The Power of Being Present

Week four is where you will learn how to compete with a present mindset. The ability to be present is one of the most powerful skills for you to develop as an athlete. 

Week 5

Learning to Manage Mistakes

The way you view and respond to mistakes makes or breaks your game. In week five, you will learn how to productively handle mistakes during games.

Week 6

Leveraging the Secret of Routines

In the final week of the program, we will uncover the secret power of routines and how you can leverage them to reduce anxiety and fear and allow yourself to play freely with confidence.

ENROLL TODAY!

Why This Online Course?

The Confident Competitor Academy is a comprehensive journey that combines proven psychological techniques with a supportive structure tailored to the unique pressures athletes face. Here’s what makes this course stand out:

1. Focused on Athletic Performance

  • Unlike general self-help or anxiety-management programs, this course is tailored to the specific mental challenges athletes face in competitive sports. We understand the pressure, the stakes, and the intense focus on results.

2. Practical Tools You Can Use on Game Day

  • Learn mental exercises, breathing techniques, and focus-building practices that you can implement immediately. These tools aren’t just theory; they’re designed to help you stay calm and confident when the pressure is on.

3. Structured 6-Week Journey for Lasting Change

  • Each week builds on the last, gradually guiding you through stages of self-discovery, mental skill-building, and confidence-boosting exercises. By the end of the six weeks, you’ll have a solid foundation for playing fearlessly and performing at your best.
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MEET YOUR COACH | Eli Straw

Eli is a sport psychology consultant and mental performance coach who works with athletes from all over the world to help them improve their mental skills and overcome any mental barriers keeping them from performing their best. He has an M.S. in psychology and his mission is to help athletes and performers reach their goals through the use of sport psychology & mental training. 

Coach Eli's Story With Anxiety & Fear

I’ve always loved sports. Ever since I was little they’ve been a part of my life. While I played many sports as a kid like most do, when I reached high school I decided to focus all of my attention on baseball. Beginning my freshman year I trained year round with the goal of playing college baseball. As I got older, my skills developed, my strength increased, and I was becoming a better player each year. But something else also happened…I began growing extremely anxious and afraid before games and I doubted myself a lot. Even though I was practicing more than any of my friends, I got frustrated thinking they were so much more confident than I was.

It was my freshman year of high school when I can remember anxiety really taking control of me as a baseball player. I can remember lying in bed at night before my first tournament with a high level travel ball team and just praying for rain. Yeah, that’s right, I wanted it to rain! Why? Because I was so anxious and afraid of playing that I figured it’d be best to not play at all. Now I can’t honestly tell you if it rained or not, I don’t remember specifically. But one thing I know for certain is that it was only the beginning and over the years my anxiety, fear, and self-doubt just kept growing worse.

Luckily it never stopped me from playing or training. In fact, I owe a lot of my work ethic to anxiety, because I was so terrified of not reaching my goals that I focused on perfecting my mechanics. But as I’ve seen in myself and many of the athletes I’ve worked with, training to be perfect driven by fear leads to playing tense and underperforming during competition. What you need as an athlete is a balance between a strong work ethic, belief in the skills you’ve built, and the ability to let go of the outcome when competing. But I’m getting ahead of myself. Where was I? Oh yeah, so towards the end of high school, while my mental game was pretty lousy, my physical skills and strength had improved and I was offered a spot on a college team. My goal had been achieved! Which unfortunately only meant one thing…more fear, more anxiety, and more self-doubt.

Fast forward to freshman year in college and I was a starter. I remained a starter all four years in college. I played third base and shortstop. Honestly, my freshman year was great, but I know I could have done better. As did my coaches and they never stopped reminding me of my potential. It wasn’t until my sophomore season, with the help of my mom, that I came to the decision to get some help on my mental game. It seemed to be the one thing still holding me back from being the player I trained so hard to be. I connected with a mental performance coach out of California named John Ellsworth. The work I did with him changed my life. Not only did he help my performances, but he also opened my eyes to the world of sport psychology. A world I have fallen in love with.

Over the next few years, I played well, though I still felt like I wasn’t performing up to my potential. When my college career came to an end, I wasn’t satisfied. Something in me told me I wasn’t ready to give up on baseball yet. So, I spent that summer playing in a league in Puerto Rico. There were scouts there, but nothing came of it. So, I kept training throughout the fall and winter, in hopes of signing with either a team in Europe or an independent league here in the U.S. During that time, I made the decision that when I was finished with baseball, I wanted to pursue a career in sport psychology.

So, while I was training I began working toward my master’s in psychology with a sport psychology specialization. I loved the idea, because the program was a distant learning program, so I could work on my master’s while still playing baseball. What could be better than that?

That spring I landed on the Tucson Saguaros of the Pecos league. I played one season with them, enjoying every second of it. The experience was incredible and we won the championship that season. However, the best experience I can say I ever had with baseball came the following season, when I found myself on a flight to Europe.

Through a website called Baseball Jobs Overseas, I was recruited by the Brasschaat Braves out of Belgium. The experience was incredible. The culture was different, the people were kind, and I honestly played the best baseball of my life!

The reason I bring it up is because the previous year, during the offseason, I committed myself to strengthening my mindset. I took all the tools John taught me, coupled with what I learned through my master’s program, along with my own research, and got to work on overcoming my anxiety, gaining control over my mind, and building higher levels of confidence. It was during that time I began to form my proactive approach to mental training I now use and have seen repeated success with in mental performance coaching.

Before I went to Belgium, as I was finishing up my master’s, I founded Success Starts Within. It started with a new article each week (mostly as a way to research sport psychology topics) and grew into the business it is today. After my season in Europe I decided to step away from baseball. I could have kept playing in Europe and made a longer career out of it, but my passions had changed. I wanted to help other athletes who were dealing with anxiety and fear to improve their mindsets so they can not only have more success within their sport, but enjoy themselves as well. Because when you’re dealing with performance anxiety and fear of failure, it sucks the fun out of your game. And when that happens, you will never be the player you know you can be.

I now work with athletes from all over the world on overcoming their fear and anxiety through 1-1 coaching. The coaching has been a huge success and I am grateful for all the athletes I've been able to help.

I have now taken the very same techniques I use in 1-1 coaching and created this online course. My goal is to help as many athletes as I can overcome fear and anxiety and play the game they love with freedom and confidence. Starting with you!

Thank you for reading my story and I wish you the best of success in all that you do.

What Athletes are Saying...

“Eli’s mental training and techniques really helped me through competition anxiety that I’ve struggled with for years. The strategies we discussed made sure I was focused and relaxed in the moment, and I was able to win a bronze medal for the USA at the Acrobatic Gymnastics World Championships.”

Audrey | Acrobatic Gymnastics

“Working with Eli helped further my appreciation for the importance of mental strength within athletics. My in-game anxiety diminished while both my confidence in myself and my game took huge leaps. Most importantly, I learned tools that continue to improve my mental toughness not only in athletics, but in life.”

Clay | College Basketball Player

“Working with Eli has made a significant difference for my son. From the start, Eli’s structured approach provided my son with practical tools to manage his challenges. He helped him set clear goals and develop strategies that have led to real progress. Eli’s insights and techniques have empowered my son to handle stress and anxiety more effectively. We highly recommend Eli!”

Sergio | Baseball Dad

“I was never one to ask for help. I always thought that I can do it and figure it out myself. But after a few years of being in a bad place doing the game I love, I realized I needed to change something. And nothing changes if nothing changes. Now I am at the top of my game again. I owe it all to Eli Straw. He set me up and talked to me about different processes to control my anxiety. He is the best and would recommend him to anyone struggling with an aspect of their game.”

Adam | Darts

“With many negative thoughts consuming my head, my play on the golf course struggled. Once I began working with Eli we started to make great improvements each session that helped my mentality immensely. Having a better mental game and mentality improved my play on the course. I would absolutely not be where I am now without Eli and his program.”

Will | College Golfer

Don’t Let Fear & Anxiety Hold You Back Any Longer

Imagine being able to play with full confidence, trusting yourself to perform when it counts. Imagine walking onto the field without that tight feeling in your chest or that voice in your head telling you to hold back. This is possible for you!

The Confident Competitor Academy Includes

Daily Mental Training Videos

Each week you will have easy to consume daily mental training videos that walk you through concepts and exercises to begin developing the positive mental skills that work to overcome fear & anxiety.

30 Downloadable Worksheets

Each video is accompanied by a worksheet for you to download and complete. 

Actionable Tools

The course is based on a proven system with actionable tools that work to change your thinking and mental approach to your game.

Weekly Q&A Coaching Calls

Each week you will have the opportunity to join a Q&A call with Coach Eli.

Ongoing Support

Throughout the course, you will have direct access to Coach Eli to ask any questions you may have about the program.

Get Lifetime Access for Only $250!

Enroll Today and take the first step toward transforming your mental game. Join a community of athletes who are ready to conquer fear, overcome anxiety, and unlock their true potential.

Confident Competitor Academy

Unlock lifetime access with a single payment of $250.

$250.00 USD

Confident Competitor Academy

Unlock lifetime access with two monthly payments of $130.

2 monthly payments of $130.00 USD

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