Often the most challenging part about a collegiate athletic career is the mental struggle that accompanies it. In taking steps to help athletes focus on their mental performance, Houghton has partnered with Jason Rollins and his program, Holos 360, which provides training resources and strategies that teams and athletes can use to develop skills in mental excellence.
 
Matthew Webb, Houghton's Director of Athletics, says that this partnership is the result of multiple years of searching for a way to give Houghton's athletes mental training resources specifically.
 
"It has come from this desire to provide our student athletes with some additional resources in this area," says Webb. "It's not mental health resources particularly, but it's much more on the front end, proactive, intentionality on mental performance."
 
The hope was to give Houghton's athletes a proactive, intentional way to prepare for athletic competition and to deal with performance anxiety or other issues that accompany athletic involvement. After experimenting with other organizations, the department began having conversations with Rollins about this more proactive approach.
 
The goal of Rollins' program is to help athletes train and develop mental excellence which is a key ingredient to athletic performance. Rollins has over 20 years of coaching and teaching experience and is certified as a Mental Performance Mastery Coach. The program provides additional resources designed to preemptively help athletes refocus their thinking. Rollins outlines the process that his program focuses on.
 
"The program is designed around three phases: learning to prepare well, to perform well, and to reflect well," says Rollins. "I believe there are key skills and key disciplines in each one of those phases. My goal is to help athletes and coaches learn these disciplines and skills so they can maximize their performance."
 
Rollins was inspired to look more into training mental toughness after a peer told him it wasn't possible to make athletes mentally tougher. Even though he was told it couldn't be done, Rollins couldn't accept that assessment. He discovered that mental grit and mental performance are skills that can be learned and developed. To help athletes develop these skills, he created Holos 360.
 
In the few months since the partnership started, Rollins has been connecting with athletes and coaches through online meetings, with both entire teams and in a one on one setting. Houghton's athletes have spoken highly of the program and its impact on their mental performance. Webb remarks on how well received the program has been by both athletes and coaches.
 
"It's all anecdotal at this point," says Webb. "The conversations or meetings an athlete might have with Jason are confidential. We're not tracking those numbers… I've had students come to me and say to me, 'it's been awesome.' I think it's been really positive, from that perspective."
 
What makes Rollins' program effective is the focus he gives to each team and athlete individually. One of his methods includes getting down to the heart of an athlete and understanding their individual struggles. He not only dedicates himself to working with teams and coaches but gives a chance for athletes to meet with him one on one. 
 
A unique aspect of the program is how Rollins brings a Christian focus to his methods. At the heart of his training, he helps athletes understand their "Imago Dei."
 
"We get wrapped up in what we're doing, in our performance, our playing time, results…When [athletes] understand that their identity is placed in who God made them to be, it releases them to perform at their best," he says.
 
When athletes remind themselves that their identity is rooted in the purpose God gave them -- rather than focus on stats and performance as their defining feature -- it can free them to do their best without the pressure of winning and losing. This Christian perspective is not only helping athletes recenter on what's most important but encouraging even more focused performance.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Kyra Binney is a senior writing major from Lewisburg, Pa., and a member of the Houghton cross country and track & field teams. She is serving as an intern in Sports Information during the fall semester.