How to Build Player-Led Team Culture & Mental Toughness in Sport with Andrew Cipriano
Hosts Jay Hedley and Tarek Michael-Chouja welcomed special guest Andrew Cipriano, a culture and mental performance coach. The three engaged in a conversation about the importance of mindset, player ownership, and building strong team culture in sport.
In high performance sport, it’s easy to focus on tactics, skills, and results. But as Andrew Cipriano explains, the real difference often comes down to the mental game. Many athletes have the technical ability to succeed, yet struggle to perform under pressure. The missing piece is not skill, but the ability to manage thoughts, emotions, and reactions in the moment.
Andrew shares how shifting from an outcome based mindset to a process driven approach can completely change performance. Instead of focusing on the scoreboard or external factors, athletes are encouraged to control what they can control, their thoughts, feelings, and actions. This shift allows them to stay present, perform consistently, and avoid the mental traps that lead to frustration or self doubt.
A key theme in the conversation is player led team culture. Rather than relying on a top down coaching style, Andrew emphasizes creating environments where athletes take ownership. This includes building trust, encouraging open communication, and fostering accountability without judgment. When players feel safe to speak up and support each other, performance naturally improves.
Andrew also highlights the importance of state before performance. If an athlete is not in the right mental and emotional state, even the best strategy will fall short. By helping athletes identify and manage their state, coaches can unlock higher levels of performance and consistency.
One of the most powerful takeaways is the idea of focusing on micro moments. Games are often decided by small, seemingly insignificant actions. By paying attention to these moments and staying locked into the present, athletes give themselves the best chance to succeed.
This episode is a reminder that winning is not just about talent or strategy. It is about mindset, culture, and the ability to stay grounded under pressure. For coaches, athletes, and leaders, the message is clear. Build the person, and the performance will follow.
Resources:
Email Andrew Cipriano at andrew@mindstartsnow.com.au
Get 15% off our Mental Skills Training course. Simply go to Functional Training Institute and input ‘PDM15’ at the cart checkout.
Check out our best selling book Purpose Driven Movement by host Tarek Michael-Chouja and Dan Henderson.
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About Our Guest:
Andrew Cipriano is a culture and mental performance coach and the founder of Mind Starts Now. With a background in semi-professional basketball coaching, Andrew works with athletes, teams and leaders to strengthen mindset, communication and high-performance culture. He supports programs across basketball environments within Basketball Victoria and is currently in conversations with clubs in the National Basketball League regarding future performance roles. Andrew also works with an international Australian cyclist, delivers wellbeing workshops in schools and supports business leaders and CEOs through performance coaching focused on mindset, leadership and resilience.
About Your Hosts:
Tarek is the co-founder of the functional training institute and FitWell Education lab. Tarek is an international educator and speaker who has presented numerous times at the biggest convention in Australia, Asia and the US. In addition, Tarek has presented courses to thousands of trainers throughout Australia, Asia, the Middle East and South America. Tarek is also a best-selling author of ‘Purpose Driven Movement.
Jay Hedley is a high-performance coach and creator of the Integral+ methodology, a whole-person approach to elite development. With over 20 years of experience, he has supported Olympic gold and silver medallists, Rugby World Cup competitors, professional boxers, and Formula 1 teams including Red Bull Racing and Williams F1. His work goes beyond traditional mental skills training, developing athletes across mindset, physiology, personality structure, and leadership. A Meta Coaching Foundation Certified Coach, NLP Master Trainer, and Neuro-Semantics Specialist, Jay helps performers elevate both results and consciousness.
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