Sport and Exercise Psychology Consultancy
Hello
Barney Wren CPsychol, MSc, BSc
I am an HCPC-registered Sport and Exercise Psychologist and a Chartered member of the British Psychological Society. I set up Mind-Find to provide simple, purposeful, and individualised psychological support to teams, individuals and organisations.
I've always had a passion for sports, and I started to gain interest in psychology after sustaining numerous injuries - impacting my confidence to transition back to playing after long periods on the sideline. While it was challenging, studying psychology helped me develop an awareness of why I respond in certain ways, and allowed me to manage my expectations of what felt realistic/achievable to move towards. I love to work with people to understand their world, their context, and the challenges they are experiencing. I fundamentally enjoy the work I do, and there’s nothing I enjoy more than working with individuals and teams to help them perform at their best.
Experiences:
Most recently, I have been embedded within a professional Football Academy, supporting to create a person-centered environment to influence at a systemic, cultural, training, team, and individual level. I have also gained experience working with performers and coaches across a range of sports and organisations that include;
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Rugby Union
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Cycling
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College / University scholarship programs
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Cricket
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Badminton
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Athletics
Away from sport, I have worked as a Wellbeing Advisor for several organisations- supporting clients who present psychological barriers that have built up over time and are resistant to change.
WHY SPORT PSYCHOLOGY
There is a growing number of people who are fascinated by the psychology of sports performance, with many coaches, athletes, parents etc... curious to understand the role sports psychology can play in supporting an individual's performance and wellbeing. Often, this curiosity to explore something new comes from personal experience. For example, trying to understand how performance can fluctuate from training to competition, or why simple skills performed easily day to day, can suddenly break down under pressure.
Observing the careers of great athletes is another source of fascination. Why do some physically talented athletes fail to achieve their potential? Why is a coach successful with one team unable to replicate the success in another team? What are the psychological qualities needed to return to competition after a career-threatening injury? These questions, and many more, are often the subject of conversations among coaches, supporters, and indeed athletes themselves! Given the complexity of human behaviour, it is no surprise that many people are fascinated by what sports psychology can offer.
Sports psychology is now widely accepted as offering a crucial edge over competitors and plays a huge role in behaviour in sports, exercise, and performance environments. While important for continuing high performance in elite athletes, it also provides insights into optimizing functioning in areas of our lives beyond sports.
Assessing/profiling strengths and weaknesses
Transition and support through injury
Managing pressure and performance anxiety
Developing and maintaining resilience
Developing impactful coach-athlete relationships
Initiating and maintaining exercise behaviours
Promoting psychological safety in systems/teams
Growing belief and confidence in ability
Ma te ronge, ka mobio;
Ma te mobio, ka marama;
Ma te marama, ka matau;
Ma te matau, ka ora.
From listening comes knowledge;
From knowledge comes understanding;
From understanding comes wisdom;
From wisdom comes wellbeing.