Have you ever had someone close to you that couldn’t keep a secret?
I’d be shocked if you haven’t.
What does it feel like when someone shares your secret?
Probably like crap. It does for me.
I’m also guessing it makes you distrustful of the person who shares it.
I recently shared the testimony with my audience of a current client who is a professional baseball player. For those unfamiliar, most – if not all – Major League Baseball clubs have at least one mental performance coach.
One of the reasons this client has chosen to work with me is because he doesn’t trust that his club’s MPC staff will hold what he shares in confidence.
I haven’t worked in the professional baseball setting, so I don’t know if MPCs share confidential information with the front office or the on-field baseball coaches. However, the mere perception that this could happen is enough for this player (and many others) to invest in a coach outside his organization.
Certified Mental Performance Consultants (CMPC) like myself are held to an ethical standard about maintaining client confidentiality. Below is an excerpt from the Association for Applied Sport Psychology (AASP) Ethical Code explaining this:
“(CMPCs) do not disclose confidential identifiable information across professional activities concerning their individual or organizational clients, or other recipients of their services unless the person or organization has given explicit consent.”
If you are part of my community, then you have probably noticed that I don’t identify my clients beyond general descriptions. And, every single one of those clients provided explicit consent to share their testimonial under these conditions.
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I have a lot of families that don’t want others to know that they are working with a mental performance coach. Whether I agree or not, this is their right. It’s my ethical responsibility to respect that right.
I’m confident that disclosing more details about client wins would be beneficial for me and my business. Getting a client testimonial video seeing and hearing someone’s testimony is almost certainly more impactful than a simple Canva image with a quote on it.
Everybody conducts their business differently. Frankly, it’s not my place to judge anyone other than myself. Honestly, I wish I was comfortable sharing my successes at times. However, I have a few core values that drive my beliefs on how I operate as a mental performance coach.
The client comes first.
My reputation is all I have.
I want long-term relationships with my clients.
I share this story today in the spirit of informing only. Every family chooses who to help them based upon their needs, wants, and values. More importantly, families choose who they trust. It is up to them and them only.
Read this before you hire a mental performance coach
If you are considering partnering with a mental performance coach (or someone like it), then here are a few (more) suggestions:
- Do your research and ask questions that you need answers to.
- Ensure that your coaching agreement clearly addresses confidentiality obligations.
- Trust your instincts when answering this question: Does this person have my best interests at heart?
Fear that confidentiality will be compromised should NOT be the reason that you choose not to access mental performance coaching for your young athlete.
I can keep a secret. Yes, it’s my job. However, I’m proud of that nonetheless.
Email me at michael@ftbcoaching.com if you’d like to learn more.