USTA Director of Mental Performance Dr. Larry Lauer on resilience, emotion, and competing under pressure.
About the Episode
In the latest installment of the Sport Fuels Life Mental Performance Series, we sat down with Dr. Larry Lauer, Director of Mental Performance for the USTA, to discuss one of the most important areas of athletic development: mental performance.
With experience working across multiple sports, including hockey and tennis, Dr. Lauer brings a unique perspective on competition, emotional control, resilience, and athlete development. Throughout the conversation, he explained that mental toughness is not about pretending emotions do not exist. Instead, it is about learning how to respond productively when pressure, mistakes, frustration, or adversity show up.
“The emotions aren’t the problem, because they’re natural. We feel them. What you control is your response to your anger.”
For athletes and coaches alike, this episode is a reminder that mental performance is not separate from physical performance — it is deeply connected to how competitors think, react, recover, and grow.
Top 5 Takeaways
1. Mental Toughness Is About Responding to Adversity
Athletes at every level experience frustration, doubt, and pressure. The difference is often how they respond after those moments occur.
2. Emotions Are Normal — and Can Be Helpful
Instead of teaching athletes to suppress emotions, Dr. Lauer believes coaches should help players understand and manage them.
Anger, disappointment, nervousness, and frustration are all part of competition. In fact, emotions can provide energy, focus, and motivation when handled correctly.
3. Awareness Creates Better Competitors
Dr. Lauer explained that athletes often become trapped in their own experience during competition. Learning to understand what opponents, teammates, and coaches may be experiencing can reduce frustration and improve emotional control.
4. Great Environments Build Resilience
Elite competitors are rarely developed by accident. Environment matters.
Challenging practice settings, strong coaching relationships, and exposure to adversity can help athletes develop resilience over time.
5. Mental Skills Can Be Trained
While some athletes may naturally possess certain tendencies, Dr. Lauer emphasized that mental skills can absolutely be developed through coaching, repetition, awareness, and experience.
Simple tools like breathing, routines, and self-reflection can make a major impact over time.
Mindset Shift
1. Mental Toughness Is About Responding to Adversity
Athletes at every level experience frustration, doubt, and pressure. The difference is often how they respond after those moments occur.
2. Emotions Are Normal — and Can Be Helpful
Instead of teaching athletes to suppress emotions, Dr. Lauer believes coaches should help players understand and manage them.
Anger, disappointment, nervousness, and frustration are all part of competition. In fact, emotions can provide energy, focus, and motivation when handled correctly.
3. Awareness Creates Better Competitors
Dr. Lauer explained that athletes often become trapped in their own experience during competition. Learning to understand what opponents, teammates, and coaches may be experiencing can reduce frustration and improve emotional control.
4. Great Environments Build Resilience
Elite competitors are rarely developed by accident. Environment matters.
Challenging practice settings, strong coaching relationships, and exposure to adversity can help athletes develop resilience over time.
5. Mental Skills Can Be Trained
While some athletes may naturally possess certain tendencies, Dr. Lauer emphasized that mental skills can absolutely be developed through coaching, repetition, awareness, and experience.
Simple tools like breathing, routines, and self-reflection can make a major impact over time.
Mindset Shift
Many athletes grow up believing that mistakes are proof they are failing.
Dr. Lauer challenged that thinking completely.
Instead of viewing mistakes as evidence that something is wrong, he encouraged athletes and coaches to see them as information — feedback that can guide improvement.
When athletes begin to understand that errors are part of growth, they become more willing to compete freely, adapt under pressure, and recover more quickly after setbacks.
This also changes the role of the coach. Rather than immediately correcting every mistake, coaches can guide athletes toward reflection and problem-solving.
As Dr. Lauer explained:
“It’s okay to make mistakes. In fact, I want you making mistakes.”
For many athletes, that may be the mindset shift they need most.
Going Deeper
One of the most fascinating parts of the episode centered around “triggers” — the moments that cause athletes to spiral emotionally during competition.
A missed serve. A bad call. A mistake at the wrong time.
Dr. Lauer explained that these moments do not automatically ruin performance. What matters is how athletes interpret and respond to them.
The first step is awareness.
Athletes who understand what triggers frustration or anxiety can begin creating healthier responses instead of reacting automatically. Breathing routines, reset habits, and simple self-talk strategies can help players regain focus before emotions fully take over.
The goal is not perfection. The goal is growth, awareness, and the ability to compete through adversity with composure and confidence.
“We’re feeling what we feel, but we’re not slaves to that feeling.” – Dr. Larry Lauer
To Connect with Dr. Larry Lauer
Connect on Linkedin: Larry Lauer | LinkedIn
