Happy New Year and welcome back to the Dialed & Driven Hockey Mentality Podcast! We’re kicking off the year with a major announcement: we’ve officially partnered with Vaughn Custom Sports, a premier goalie gear company proudly based right here in Michigan.

Vaughn has been part of our hockey story long before this partnership ever existed. Both Natalie and Jeff wore Vaughn gear throughout their playing careers, and this collaboration is a natural extension of the trust, craftsmanship, and innovation we've always believed in. Their commitment to quality and their decades of impact on the game make them a perfect fit for the Dialed & Driven community.

Check out Vaughn's website: https://vaughnhockey.com/

Today our hosts, Chris Palmer and Jeff Lerg discuss overcoming obstacles in pursuit of hockey dreams as well as setting the tone for a year of growth, belief, and action.

Episode 51 highlights:

- Natalie Ferenc, our producer, is back on the pod—bringing fresh inspiration as we dive into the stories of high-performing athletes and what’s truly possible in just one year’s time.

- Inspirational athletes who exemplify their overcoming philosophy. Natalie highlighted Fernando Mendoza, Indiana's quarterback who won the Heisman Trophy and Alex Ovechkin's remarkable comeback story, emphasizing how the 39-year-old hockey legend broke his leg but returned to set the all-time goal-scoring record.

- Finding your "why".

- How sports follow a non-linear path and that perfection is impossible, but the process of pursuing excellence leads to great outcomes.

- The importance of having fun and cherishing the small moments spent doing what you love.

AND A LOT MORE!

‼️ New Segment Alert! ‼️
We want to hear from YOU. Send us your questions—mindset, mental performance, hockey development, habits, anything. We’ll break it all down on the pod.

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Thank you for listening to The Dialed & Driven Hockey Mentality Podcast! We appreciate every listener, comment, rating, and share!

Register for our Mentality Building Curriculum, The Dialed & Driven Success Formula!

🎯 https://www.goaliementors.com/successformula

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Welcome to Episode 50 - If You Stop Evolving, You’re Losing 🧰

Our hosts, Chris Palmer and Jeff Lerg discuss innovation in athletic performance and the importance of being a student of the game by identifying strengths and growth opportunities, and continuously seeking improvement.

Register for our Mentality Building Curriculum, The Dialed & Driven Success Formula! ➡️ Click here to learn more

Episode highlights:

- How growth mindset facilitates innovation and creativity.

- The importance of positioning innovation as an additional tool rather than an obligation. Fundamental skills remain paramount!

- What it means to keep putting tools in your tool box.

- How mental performance tools can become stale through overuse, suggesting athletes regularly update motivational phrases or reminders on equipment.

- Why innovation doesn't require dramatic changes. Small tweaks can yield significant improvements, such as dietary adjustments or enhanced visualization techniques.

- We warned against over-training without proper recovery, noting that physical presence at training sessions doesn't guarantee development without adequate nutrition and focus.

AND A LOT MORE!

‼️ New Segment Alert! ‼️
We want to hear from YOU. Send us your questions—mindset, mental performance, hockey development, habits, anything. We’ll break it all down on the pod.

➡️ Click here to submit your questions!

Thank you for listening to The Dialed & Driven Hockey Mentality Podcast! We appreciate every listener, comment, rating, and share!

Send us a text

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dialedanddriven/

X: https://x.com/dialedanddriven

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheDialedandDrivenPodcast

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Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/b1168059-6e38-4352-b3d5-c5fdbba6067f/dialed-driven-hockey-mentality-podcast

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/dialed-driven-hockey-mentality-podcast/id1791139650

Welcome to Episode 49 - Are You Really Giving 100%… or Just Saying You Are? 💯

Today, our hosts, Chris Palmer and Jeff Lerg discuss mid-season check-ins for hockey players and the challenge of self-assessment during holiday breaks when numerous distractions compete for athletes' attention.

Register for our Mentality Building Curriculum, The Dialed & Driven Success Formula! ➡️ Click here to learn more

Episode highlights:

- A personal story from Jeff about his journey on becoming the starting goalie at Michigan State University his freshmen year along with the steps it took to gain that title.

- Why a mid-season self-assessment is important in evaluating your timeline in achieving the goals you set at the beginning of the season.

- How the self-assessment doesn't require abandoning fun but rather making intentional time for honest evaluation and targeted improvement.

- Practical self-assessment strategies. Palmer outlined a systematic approach: first, evaluate what's working and what isn't—success in practice, drill execution, ice time allocation, and overall performance satisfaction. He encouraged athletes to identify both strengths worth reinforcing and weaknesses requiring attention

- Why removing external blame from self-assessment, particularly the tendency to focus on coaches or teammates rather than personal controllables is crucial.

- A statistical self-assessment method, suggesting athletes review their last 10 games individually, tracking goals, assists, total points, and plus-minus ratings. Also, using trusted coaches or advisors if you cannot honestly perform a self-assessment on your own.

AND A LOT MORE!

‼️ New Segment Alert! ‼️
We want to hear from YOU. Send us your questions—mindset, mental performance, hockey development, habits, anything. We’ll break it all down on the pod.

➡️ Click here to submit your questions!

Thank you for listening to The Dialed & Driven Hockey Mentality Podcast! We appreciate every listener, comment, rating, and share!

Send us a text

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dialedanddriven/

X: https://x.com/dialedanddriven

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheDialedandDrivenPodcast

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Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/b1168059-6e38-4352-b3d5-c5fdbba6067f/dialed-driven-hockey-mentality-podcast

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/dialed-driven-hockey-mentality-podcast/id1791139650