High Performance Mindset | Learn from World-Class Leaders, Consultants, Athletes & Coaches about Mindset - 749: Translating Performance Across Sport and Business with Dr. Armin McCrea-Dastur

Episode Date: May 12, 2026

In this episode of The High Performance Mindset, Dr. Cindra Kamphoff sits down with Dr. Armin McCrea-Dastur—leadership and performance consultant, Founder of Diamond Consulting, and expert in both business and sport psychology—to explore what it takes to perform at a high level across every environment.   Drawing from more than 30 years of experience in leadership development, organizational performance, and sport psychology, Armin shares a unique perspective on how the skills developed in athletics directly translate into success in business and life. From working with global brands like Ray-Ban, Kraft Foods, and Cadbury to supporting elite athletes and teams—including the University of North Carolina Men's Basketball program during their 2005 championship season—Armin explains how mindset, identity, and self-trust shape performance in critical moments.   You'll also hear practical strategies to manage second-guessing in the moment, build confidence in unfamiliar situations, and recognize the competitive advantage athletes already possess. Armin also reflects on her own journey stepping away from competitive skating and how that experience shaped her passion for helping others navigate performance, transition, and leadership with greater clarity.   This episode is a powerful reminder that the mindset skills built through sport don't end when competition does—they become the foundation for thriving in every arena of life.   You'll Learn: How performance principles apply across sport, business, and leadership Why athletes often struggle with identity after sport How to stop overthinking and trust yourself under pressure What separates high performers in unfamiliar environments Why self-awareness and adaptability are critical for long-term success   Episode Resources & Links Learn more about Diamond Consulting: https://www.diamondconsultingcorp.biz/ Learn more about the Mentally Strong Institute: https://mentallystronginstitute.com/ Request a Free Mental Breakthrough Call with Dr. Cindra or her team: https://freementalbreakthroughcall.com/ Download the Confidence Research Study: https://confidencestudy.com/

High performance, whether in sport, business, or leadership comes down to how you think, how you respond, and how you show up during critical times. And that's why this conversation is important and what it's about. That's why Dr. Armin McRae Dastor is here today. Armin is a leadership and performance consultant and the founder of Diamond Consulting, where she works with athletes, executives, and organizations to perform at a high level. She also serves as an adjunct faculty member at the University of Connecticut in their school of business. And throughout her career, she's worked with global brands like Raybans, Oakley, Kraft Foods, for example, incredible. And she spent 10 years with the University of North Carolina men's basketball program, which we're going to

talk about today, as well as the Yukon men's soccer program. She is the author of Your Competitive Advantage, an athlete's guide to getting hired after sport, where she helps athletes translate and transform what they've learned in sport to success in the workplace. So Armin, thank you so much for having me. I'm so excited to be here. Thank you so much. I really appreciate the opportunity. I can't wait to dive in. And what's really amazing is that you and I went to the same master's program, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, where we both got our master's degrees in performance psychology. So I'm just excited to learn more about what you've been doing since then. I know. It's so great to actually reconnect after so much time. So, yeah, lots happen since then.

Absolutely. So the first question I want to ask you is you've been involved and be able to witness so many incredible coaches, Hall of Fame coaches, such as Dean Smith at the University of North Carolina, Roy Williams, just, you know, incredible basketball coaches. What have you seen the best of the best do differently in terms of coaching? Yeah, I think it's just core leadership skills. And it's, you know, I had the honor and it truly was an honor to interview Coach Smith for my master's thesis when I was at UNCG. And I did a qualitative study to really answer the question you just asked, what makes great coaches great. And there were two things that really stood out. The first is, he came from educators and he was and always stood for being a lifelong learner himself. He used to bring, we had a legacy of coaches coming out of Carolina basketball, like Larry. Yes. Carl, George Carl and some great, great coaches. They used to come once a year and swap stories, swap strategies.

They were constantly learning for. from each other. And that came from Coach Smith's philosophy of always be learning. He was one of the best, but was never complacent. The second thing, which is endearing, but a little kind of frustrating when you're trying to have an interview with somebody, so humble. Never wanted to talk about himself. So it's hard when I'm virtually in an interview trying to figure out what makes him special, constantly comes back to his players. But that's what makes him such a great leader and why people want to be followers, why people want to push themselves to be better for him, because he's truly invested in not only you as an athlete, but you as a person. So I would say those are huge things that have been built into Carolina basketball. Coach Williams, on the other hand, is just

always coaching. Like, it doesn't matter who it is or when it is. And I have a great story on why I actually left Carolina basketball because people ask me that all the time. Like, you were at one of the best programs. Why are you not still there? And, you know, when you win a national championship, each one of us gets a ring and we go into the head coach's office and you wait for this moment for your whole career. Like, I'm going to get. the bring. I'm going to get this like great story and this, you know, so I go into coach Williams's office and it gives me the ring and we hug. And he says, so now what are you going to do? And I just kind of look at it and I'm like, well, I don't work here. Exactly. He said,

you know, Arneen, I know you well enough at this point to know that you want to make an impact. And at the end of your career, if you stay here, well, absolutely can do. You're probably going to affect about a thousand athletes. But if you go to corporate America where they do what we do, because that was the coordinator of recruiting. So I was identifying talent, bringing them in, helping to build strong teams. I was doing a lot of succession planning without even knowing it was a succession planning because not only strong estate for four years. And he said, I know. I know. I know. you well enough to know that at the end of your career, you're going to be more satisfied and know that you've actually done something if you go to corporate America. So I'm playing golf

with the head of HR at Bank of America on Saturday and I've arranged for you to have breakfast. Oh, wow. Like, I came in from jewelry. Like, I just wanted jewelry. I don't know what's happening right now. And it was a life-changing experience for me. Like, he's saw my potential and he knew I had come in as a receptionist, moved my way to, you know, recruiting, and there was nowhere else for me to go at that point. I wasn't going to be an assistant coach. And so he found an opportunity for me to use my skills in a different environment without me even knowing that. And it actually was the foundation of those aha moments for me on why I've written my book. Wow, so cool. I want to point out a couple of things there, like what you said about Dean Smith

always learning, being an educator, and just being humble, and how we can use those ideas to guide us in every moment of our lives, right, no matter what our role is. But what a great story about Roy, really thinking about what you needed to grow and develop and then setting that up for you instead of, you know, saying like, hey, I think you should take you the next step, you know, move on, but he was really guiding you towards that next step. What an incredible mentor. He's amazing. And actually still, I keep in touch. We're truly a Carolina family. Like, I think that's something that people refer to when you think about Carolina basketball, but it's absolutely true. I've been to weddings. I've been to, you know, all sorts of things,

years after we left because, you know, we start recruiting at age 12. Like, we're following these kids when they're truly kids. We can't talk to them until they're 16. But you're following them and figuring in, you're talking to coaches, you're looking at who they are as people and how they're developing and how they would fit into your program. Then you get them on campus when they actually move from kids to young adults, you grow really, really close with these athletes and it's still left today. So Coach Williams

and I are still talking as I was developing the book and some of the theories in the book. Coach Smith is one of the stories I use of the book. So yeah, it's definitely something in my blood. I love it. So before we dive into your new book, tell us a bit about how did that, that, conversation with Coach Williams, shape your career. And what have you been doing between then and now the book? So I went to Carolina originally to get my master's in sports psychology and then used it for 10 years while I was there at the basketball program. But as I started to move to corporate America, I thought to myself, well, this isn't going to translate all this sports stuff. So I went back and got a second master's in industrial organizational psychology and then eventually the PhD in leadership.

I now realize it absolutely does translate. I kind of back to school for no reason. However, it was a reason for everything. Yep. But leadership is just leadership. It doesn't really matter what the environment is. You're still looking for strong decision-making, vision. emotional intelligence, connecting with people. Those types of things are on the field, on the court,

are in the boardroom. It doesn't really matter. So I went on to become a leader in talent management, organizational development, organizational design. I worked a lot with mergers and acquisitions. One of my leaders, who was the head of North America for Mondalese International, which is Nabisco and Cadbury brands, which was divested from Kraft Foods, Mark Klaus was the leader during that time. I actually was his chief of staff, and I learned so much from him about great leadership, about business, about all of the stuff that we currently know in theory, in practice from him, high performance and what it takes and how to sort of plan that out.

He actually went on to become the CEO of Campbell's and now has sort of followed in my connection is now the president of the Washington commanders. So he moved into the sports industry. So it just shows leadership. It just can shift to different environments. with the right transitions. And I completely agree that the skills that we learn in performance psychology relate to athletes, but they relate to leaders and they relate to sport and corporate.

I think about how I use the skills every day to be the best speaker and coach and podcast host and mother and wife that I can be. And mom, yeah. Two teenagers. I use the skills every day. Exactly, exactly. So what do you think the skills are of the best leaders? You know, particularly that you have this PhD in leadership.

What are one or two or three skills that you would say like the top leaders really embody? Yeah, I would say the first is having a clear vision. Clarity helps followership. When people understand what's expected, they can get behind that mission. and therefore have the autonomy to do what they do best, that is the, that's the foundation. Then there's, you know, great communication so that you can constantly be giving feedback. You're able to communicate when people are doing things well and not doing things well. I think one of the biggest derailers of leaders are conflict avoidance and not able to have those hard conversations.

That's what coaches do really, really well, is they have those hard conversations. And it's true. They catch it in the movement. So I would say that. And then the last one is a relational interpersonal savvy, being able to pay situationally responsive, being able to talk to customers and meet people where they need to be met, employees, leaders, board of directors. you're constantly kind of shifting who, how do you show up and you meet people where they are.

One of my favorite quotes, I take the golden rule and people are constantly saying, you know, treat people like the way that you want to be treated. And I think that's actually quite self-absorged. And I say, and I hate this sort of platinum rule, treat people the way that they want to be treated. But you have to have the conversation

and figure out what that is and what that's true and that investment in them is what also starts that that great leadership presence and for people that want to follow someone who I love it and what advice would you give to people who are like yes I'm the person who likes to avoid conflict and I don't have those conversations well you know because it's not I feel really uncomfortable Yeah. There's two things, and it really depends on the short-term and long-term goals of, you know, when I'm doing some coaching and we're looking for long-term goals and actually building leadership skills for the long-term, there's a different strategy. The easiest one is starting with a phrase that gets both on the same page right away. If people know, again, that you're invested in them, they're more open to hear. For her. I suggest to the leaders I work with is because I'm invested in your success, I'd like to have a conversation about something that, you know, might be hard for us to talk about. But I think it's important because I want to make sure that we're on.

Awesome. It's true. Yeah. And it starts with, I'm telling you this because I want to make you better. And I trust that when you get the information, you will. sore, right? Like it's a different level of communication at that point when you say something difficult, like you didn't do something while. So that's the short term. The long term is really bringing to their awareness what the conflict avoidance behavior is holding them back from.

And so all of my work really is built off of the three steps, whether it's athletes or executives or educators, I always work off of the concept of awareness, control, and reset. Nice. So when you think about awareness, it's just understanding what's going on. What are you thinking about? How are you feeling? How can you then manage it? It's bringing these thoughts, the self-talk, from the subconscious to the conscious mind

so that you can actually then control it. Once you can control it, you ask yourself questions. What will serve me right now? What am I looking for? What is the end goal? And that's when they start to shift. And they realize the conflict avoidant isn't allowing them to achieve that end goal. So then we work with strategies on how to reset,

either words you say to yourself or a grounded, reaction, deep breaths, whatever it may be, reset back to a power position. Mm-hmm. Yeah. Awesome. So would you say these are three steps to regulate yourself? How would you, three steps to do what?

Yeah, three steps to continue to be your best, to ensure you to all of your knowledge, skills, and abilities. whether it's on the field or in the boardroom or just having a conversation with your spouse, right? It's how do you ensure that you have the best ability to perform in that moment and achieve the goal that you're looking to just strive for? I think a lot of the people that I talk to are constantly trying to avoid a situation rather than group. So they're avoiding failure. rather than approaching success. Yes.

And when you avoid failure or thinking about failure, that's what gets your focus. That's what gets your attention. And then that's what your self-talk is telling you. It's all about the failure. So, of course, then you have this self-fulfilling prophecy and you ultimately are focused and driven to that failure.

If you can kind of shift, if you have the awareness and the control to sort of shift and reset, to that positive approaching to success, now your focus, your brain's energy is driven to that more positive. Absolutely. Hi, Dr. Cinder Campoff here. Myself and my team just conducted this national research study on confidence that you have to check out.

The report which you can download at Confidencestudy.com shows a research-backed ways you can grow your confidence. What leaders do to both kill and grow confidence. and how confidence is not just a personal issue, but an organizational issue. I'm telling you, you've got to check this out. It's a game changer. You can find our full report at confidence study.com. And all of this connects to your new book, your competitive advantage, right?

An athlete's guide to getting hired after sport. I think that's so important because even in my work, I see a lot of athletes not unsure of, like, the next steps. and like that transition period can be really difficult because they spent so much time being an athlete and now it can be like, now what, right? So your book really focuses on performance across environments. So just tell us a bit more about the core idea behind the book, your competitive advantage. Well, so everything I do is around performance. And so the book is around transitions, but it's how to perform within that transition.

You know, I've, and it actually started from my own personal experience. I'm always asking and I'm always being asked, you know, the same questions. How do you perform when it matters? Yeah. Stay clear and focused when there's a lot of pressure. Yeah. And so that's the core aspect of the book. But it's personal for me.

I was an elite figure skater growing up. And I actually for a long time didn't actually just even think of figure skater as a thing I did. It was who I was. It became my identity. Thinking about I started at sick and NDA 14. Like that's huge development year. Yeah, it's true. When I started to step away because I decided I actually wanted a high school experience and I wanted to just be a high school student.

I didn't really know what I was giving up. I didn't realize it until I was in that new environment. And I lost my identity. You're in confident about who I was and what I brought to the table to then not being sure about either. It's hard. Yeah. And so now all of a sudden, I didn't understand how to take what I had built and all that confidence I had and on the ice and bring it into this other environment.

I didn't know how to connect the dot. And that experience has stayed with me throughout my life. I constantly think back on that when I talk to athletes today. Because athletes are constantly thinking that they are starting over. And then it's literally what they say all the time. Now what? Well, it's not a now what. It's the what's the next step.

I use what I've learned and just bring that to the next step in my journey. And that's what the book is intended to do. Take the skills and I have 10 chapters, one chapter each dedicated to a skill that transfers and actually corporate America is looking for because as a senior executive and talent management, I used to run talent acquisition teams. So I know what companies are looking for. It is discipline, time management, decision making, leadership, teamwork, all of these things that athletes have. It's just how do we connect the two together and realize that we can talk about our sport experience in a way that translates directly in the interview or in the resume to corporate experience. Isn't that so true? And there's

so many things that you learn while you're participating in sport that's going to help you in your next steps, leadership skills, resilient skills, mental toughness skills, you know, and I appreciate you just sharing that story with us because I think about one of the reasons I still do what I do is because the way I struggled as an athlete and definitely over-identified as a runner. And then when that running didn't play out, right? And when I struggled with it, it was very, very difficult. So, you know, thanks for just sharing that. And I think that these things happen for us. They happen for us, not to us.

And that's based on a quote by Byron Katie. And she said, what if everything happens for you? And I think these moments of difficulty, you know, allow us to continue to stay passionate about our work. And so when I think about you, I mean, you talk a lot about how people can, about how people, they don't connect to the dots between environments. tell us more what that means to you and how that can help the listeners continue to connect dots between environments. Think about what athletes do. They're always performing, whether it's in practice or in competition, and actually the best athletes use practice as constant competition. They're either competing against themselves or their teammates,

but they're always performing. They're always managing pressure, always making decisions, communicating, always learning on the fly, adjusting, being ad job. And those are performance skills. But when they step into something like an interview or a professional setting, they don't always see it that way. So instead of searching it with confidence, like, I got this, like this is what I do. They approach it with uncertainty. And then you start to see hesitation, overthinking,

second-guessing, whatever it might be for that person, but not because they lack the ability is what's the name. It's because they haven't connected the dot. Yeah. The work here is just helped recognize what they already have built still applies. The environment's changed, but the skill set hasn't. Nice, nice. Nice.

So the skill set hasn't changed. So when you think about an athlete or even, you know, somebody who's trying to find a new job and a different, a different field, right? Of course, that can be like nerve-wracking and they can doubt themselves because that's, they're being courageous, right? And I love this quote by Roosevelt. He said, fear isn't that, courage isn't the absence of fear. It's rather the assessment that something is more important than the fear, you know?

It's the awareness, right? It's the assessment of really, you know, how do you perceive the environment around you? Exactly, exactly. And so, you know, when you think about if it's an athlete or someone transitioning to a new environment and pushing themselves, like let's say it's a new interview or a new environment or something outside of what they've been doing like their sport, what do you think is the biggest challenge that they might face? I think when athletes step into those moments, especially when it's in a different environment, that's, that's, they're uncertain about. The biggest challenge is that is application. It's actually convenient. Yeah.

Sometimes we can have conversations and I can talk them through, you have this skill. So they get it in their mind that there's their ability is there. But then how do I do it? And just like in sport, you have to practice it. You know, so they've built these skills and the, The book actually is more of a guide or a workbook. It actually has lined paper in the back so that you can make notes. It walks you through some questions and brings you through scenarios so that you can actually

take some of those scenarios and start writing a resume at the end of the book. So it's knowing how to perform under pressure, decisions, all of those things, and then change the contact. And, you know, when they start realizing that, and they can start to actually feel more confident, they actually can perform much better. But when they don't see that, their confidence drops and they start to overthink, they start to sort of pause, they fumble over their words. And so getting it so that it doesn't have to be perfect, but it needs to be planned. Ooh. Okay.

So that they're not cautious going in and they actually have continued to focus on performing. If you can get them thinking about that mindset that makes them comfortable, just in this other environment, things start to shift. They start to sort of trust themselves again. And we do mock interviews. I have workshops that I hold and we really sit and they walk out with a resume based off of all the work that they've done in the book. So I think it's still coaching.

It's still helping them just take what they're great at and put it into a different I think it's so easy to overthink and second guess yourself. I mean, we just did this national research study on confidence that's actually in my upcoming book called The Confidence Habit. And we survey people all over the United States and we found 70% of people struggle with a harsh inner critic and have difficulty letting go of mistakes. And I actually think that's like underreported because when I ask most of my audiences, like what percentage of you are overthinkers or have a hard time moving on?

I mean, like 90% of the room raises their hand, right? So I think it's really common for people, especially high achievers, people who want to have, you know, they have big goals. So when someone is overthinking or second guessing themselves, what would you suggest that they do to actually manage that moment? So there's, so I'll get back a little to what I was talking about earlier, but I want to build on something you just said, that inner critic, I think is super important to talk about soft talk. And we talk about what are we saying to ourselves?

But I went through a coaching program when I was in one of my organizations with a company called Coach in the Box and Bridge Consulting. Okay. And they have done some great research on the personalities that our self-talk takes. Cool. It is so cool. And we actually have six different tendencies depending on. Okay.

I believe in harmony. We tend to be more of a pleaser. If we are protecting, you know, perfectionism, we tend to be more of a warrior. So there's six of these inner critics that we're talking about. We can be provers, pleasers, critics, victims, warriors. martyrs. And that's a great awareness. That's that, you know, and again, what I do is I always start with awareness. What are we staying and thinking and feeling so that we can control it and we can actually have it serve us? And all of these inner voices actually come from your brain protecting you.

You know that doesn't feel right. So just figuring out what doesn't feel right, what's shifted in us and then how do we manage that a little bit better? I think that is one of the biggest game changers. If we can start really understanding ourselves, what do we value the most? And then when it's not there, how does the fight or flight and things kick in? And they sort of hijack them.

Stop it and then hijack ourselves back in. And that's a lot of the work that I do. When when people do start, overthinking when they do start to understand all right i'm getting into my prover i'm a huge prover and a pleaser i know that about myself and when i do start to prove what i'm capable of um you know i can start to get in your face that i can start to like steal the thunder and the breath out of the room learn to be aware of it and then manage that and now it serves me

So instead of proving, I now in my mind, my reset is don't prove. Okay. Excellent. Find somebody else in the room that I can build off of and lift up. Athletes can do that by, you know, thinking about the assist rather than the basket themselves and those types of things. And if we can just make those small shifts, again, doesn't matter what environment. that builds the teamwork and the leadership skills around you, but around other people around you as well.

I think that's so helpful to think about these six types of inner critics because it also helps us realize that we're not alone. And if these are just human tendencies, it's like, okay, you know, I'm not the only one that has this negative voice that gets in my way, right? It's part of the human experience. can you give us an example of these six tendencies and maybe how they live out in our lives? Yeah. So the best part about this coaching that I went through was the concept.

We talk all the time about out-of-the-box thinking. And people throw that around all the time and innovation and all that. What great out-of-box thinking. We very rarely talk about in-the-box thinking. And this overthinking, this, holding back, these inner critics as they happen are what happens when we're in the box. It's an instinct. The fight or flight freeze, fawn is an instinct. It happens before we even know it's happened.

Yes. Yes. And so just getting a better understanding of realizing when I'm in the box and when I'm need to do something to control my behavior, my mindset is really, really powerful. And so I talk a lot with executives and with athletes about what is your in-the-box thinking. How do you recognize when it's happening? A lot of times it's also very physical, especially for athletes, you start to get sweating palms, your heart races. There are cues that we can learn about our ourselves, then we can actually change our environment, change our behavior, change our mindset quicker.

The biggest thing is not trying to avoid being in the box, but recognizing when you are in the box because it's an instinct. Do not try to not be human, right? Like we are all human. This happens to us because the brain's trying to get in front of it and protect us. It starts from a long time ago, you know, a lion's coming at us, you know, run. Like, we don't have time to think, oh, should I run? So it's the same instinct right now. I'm in a clutch position. I need to make that last basket or we don't win the national championship.

Like, that's a lot of pressure. So realizing that this is going to be a pressure situation, I need to use my tools. I need to reset. I need to control myself, even if I can't control the environment. So I work with athletes on how do you talk to yourself? What do you say? How do you get yourself back to a steady state of and you have to actually that's muscle memory. You have to do that in practice so that you can bring yourself back to that practice, relax state where you have control and you have all of that the tools and faculties to be your best. If you can pair that tree. So instead of avoiding a bad, trigger, substitute it with a positive trigger and the trigger to bring you back to a steady state, it actually starts to bring athletes back to where they... Thank you for sharing that.

And you know, one of the things I really appreciated that we've talked about so far, Armeen, is like this idea of like how you got into this work and as a figure skater and how you lost your sense of identity. And I think so many people can relate to that where their identity is tied into their their work, right? And I know all those listeners are thinking about times where they, that maybe they've over-identified with something. So what advice would you have for people when they are identifying with their sport, their work, you know, and it's holding them back? And how did that, how did this experience shape what you do today? Well, I, when I opened my consulting firm,

I thought about the name of the firm for like four months. It was ridiculous. It was. Talk about overthinking. Yeah. But I really wanted it to represent what I did and what I was trying to do. And I believe that people are multifaceted and they're not just that one thing, that one identity. So I named the company Diamond Consulting because a diamond has these multiple facets. And each one reflects something different depending on how you look at it and it and how the light hits it. But the combination of those facets are what gives that diamond

strength and brilliance. And I believe it's nice. People. So, and I find that people actually more common than not reduce ourselves to just one of those facets. You know, you're an athlete, you're a student, stuff that we were talking about. So when I went through that experience as a skater and getting into being a teenager, I sort of realized years later, that's what I was going through. I was trying to figure out my facet. And so a lot of the work I do right now

is helping people define themselves by the multiple things that they have to offer. Your confidence is built by so many different things. And when you're a leader, or when you are a good team member. Yeah. There's so many different facets that you're bringing to that situation.

And that's a lot of the work I'm doing currently right now is bringing that awareness to student athletes as they go into the workforce. When the environment changes, all of those facets don't go away. You just have to realize what they are, articulate them, put them down in paper.

You know, when we do the mock interviews, I record it because athletes love game filmed. We watch it and we talk about like when I asked this question. So it's simple questions. Sometimes, you know, I just did a mock interview last week with somebody and asked a super simple question. Like give me an example of a time that you led. And I saw hesitation. And this was a team captain. This was somebody who had, you know, won the ACC championship and all sorts of great experiences, and they just couldn't find it.

So, you know, we stopped for a second. We reset. But that's exactly what happened to me when I was skating, too. I had to stop and reset and really figure out what do I bring to the table again. And that's happening from, like, I'm a skater to I am a hard worker. I am a dedicated, disciplined. So I brought all of that to, you know, making friends, finding another thing. I joined the band and stuff.

Not making myself sound very popular. Right. Right. And I then shifted all of those teamwork and that dedication into something else and then started to build new friends and a new portion of my identity. Did it again when I went to college, did it again when I went into the workforce. When I moved from sports to corporate America, I've reinvented myself so many times. And when I then went to consulting and I continue to be successful because I leverage, I don't start over,

I leverage how I've been successful in my past and just use it through you and first time situations. The learning agility, I think, is a huge asset in my career. Amazing, Dr. Armin. I love talking to you. And I would love for you to share with us how we can find your book, your competitive advantage, and how can we follow along with the work that you're doing in the world, the amazing work you're doing? probably my website is the best place that has everything. I have a strong presence on LinkedIn and those types of things too.

But the website is diamond consulting.biz.com.net. Everything else was taken. So I went to the biz. But there you can send me a note and those types of things. The book is on Amazon, Barnes & Noble. I actually have a couple of speaking events. that are coming in the Connecticut area. So in Canton and also at the Buckland Hills Mall,

if you're in Connecticut, would love to see you at the end of May and early June. I'm really trying to get in front of as many graduating seniors moving from sport into that next phase in their life. And some of that is just moving from sport to college, right? High school athletes, it's any transition that you're moving from one place to another. but the best place would probably be going to the rest.

Amazing. Well, here is what I took from today that I loved. Thank you so much for just talking about what the best coaches do and giving us some examples of Roy Williams and Dean Smith, just like iconic coaches. I loved what we talked about related to like the three leadership principles that the best really exhibit clarity around having a clear vision and articulating that, you know, great communicators and just really a relationship.

savvy. Thanks so much for sharing with us about how we can start a conversation when we are nervous about conflict. And then when we were talking about your three steps of continuing to be the best that you can be, awareness, control, and reset. And then the six tendencies of our self-talk and our inner critic, that's, I think, really helpful for people to consider and release they're not alone. A couple of phrases I wrote is like being planned over perfect and then what you said about don't prove improve. Do you have any final advice or comments for people as we wrap up today, Dr. Armeen? I would just re-articulate the big keys. I think that a lot of the work I'm doing right now is focused around is that, you know, when your sport career ends, it doesn't really end.

You can still leverage everything that you've learned. You're not staring over. You just have to reset, you know. And then the other big thing is you're not just one thing. You are a multitude, a very dynamic, beautiful human being, not just an athlete. You are a beautiful human being. And I say that to so many of my clients. And, you know, their eyes sort of just like change when you say that.

I think, you know, and they realize I'm more than just this. month thing, I think huge things happen. And there's so much more that they're capable of when you approach life that way. So, you know, and that's their competitive advantage. And that's why I wrote the name of the book is your competitive advantage, because I do think that these are natural-born leaders. And they found sport to show that leadership. Now they just have to find the next big playing field for themselves. Excellent. Thank you, Dr. Armin. I appreciate you. I keep crushing it and doing this important essential work in the world.

Thank you so much for the opportunity to join you. Thank you for reconnecting after, what, 30 years of being at UNC at the same time. And I really appreciate all the work you're doing too. Way to go for finishing another episode of the high-performance mindset. I'm giving you a virtual fist pump. Holy cow, did that go by way too fast for anyone else? If you want more, remember to subscribe. And you can head over to Dr. Sindra for show notes

and enjoy my exclusive community for high performers, where you get access to videos about mindset each week. So again, you can add over to Dr. Sindra. That's d R-C-I-N-D-R-A.com. See you next week.