Stress is a normal part of life—especially for those of us who compete in dog sports. Whether it's the pressure of performing well, the fear of failure, or just trying to stay focused, stress can creep in and throw us off our game. While you can't avoid stress entirely, you ...

The other day, I was spinning. I was worrying  - no, fretting - about something that might or could happen, and then planning what to do about it. I was burning a LOT of energy on "negative fantasy island." It wasn't fun.

I saw myself doing it - I was fully aware. I knew I...

I'm not sure who needs to hear this, but it's okay to forgive yourself. For mistakes made, for things not working out, or for the things you wish you could do over.

It's okay. You can let it go. You can forgive yourself.

You might be surprised to learn you're not alone in holding...

We are anthropologically wired to look for the bad stuff. To look for the danger, the things that might go wrong. This behavior has kept us safe from bears, and fire, and toxic cave-people (I assume). When we scan our environment for danger to find none, we can then focus on the task at hand -...

Ever have a really good day and feel less confident as a result? It can happen for a few reasons: 

• We fear we can't repeat the excellent performance, that it was just a fluke (imposter syndrome).
• We're afraid we set a new standard that we have to live up to (pressure).
• We want to...

Everyone feels at least something before they walk into the ring. Ring nerves are a continuum from chill and relaxed to absolute panic. And sometimes, we misread our excitement for performance anxiety which can trip us up and create nerves that weren't initially there.

Basically, ring nerves and...