Sports Hypnosis Performance for Athletes
12 Years University Lecturer & Coach
Olympic & National-Level Athletes Supported
Hypnosis Consultant for the BBC, NBC, CBS, ITV and FOX TV networks. Advanced Hypnosis Education: University of California San Diego Medical School (ASCH )
Helping athletes build confidence, focus and mental resilience through evidence-informed sports performance hypnosis.
For more than 35 years, Barry Jones has helped athletes at every level—from Olympic and national competitors to high-level club athletes—develop the mental skills needed to perform when it matters most.
Whether you are competing at the highest level or striving to reach your next level of performance, your mindset can be the difference between knowing what you are capable of and consistently showing it when the pressure arrives.
Your Mind Can Be Your Greatest Performance Advantage
Every athlete understands the importance of physical preparation.
You train your body. You refine your technique. You develop your skills. You prepare for competition.
But sport is not only physical.
The moments that define performance often happen in your mind.
A gymnast needs confidence when performing a difficult skill under pressure.
A rugby player needs composure when making decisions in a critical moment.
A triathlete needs resilience when fatigue and doubt appear during a long event.
A basketball player needs the ability to stay focused after mistakes.
A baseball player needs confidence and emotional control when every pitch matters.
The best athletes understand that mental performance is a skill that can be developed.
Sports performance hypnosis is a powerful way to train that skill.
A Doctor Prescribes Medications, a Hypnotist Words
Helping Athletes Perform at Their Best
I work with athletes who want to:
Build Confidence
Confidence is not simply something athletes either have or do not have.
It can be developed, strengthened and reinforced.
Sports performance hypnosis can help athletes create stronger mental patterns, trust their preparation and approach competition with greater belief in their ability.
Stay Focused Under Pressure
Elite performance requires the ability to stay present.
Athletes often know exactly what they should do—but pressure, distraction and overthinking can interfere.
Mental training can help athletes develop greater concentration and control their attention when it matters most.
Recover Quickly From Mistakes
Every athlete makes mistakes.
The difference between successful performers and struggling performers is often what happens next.
Developing emotional control allows athletes to reset, refocus and return their attention to the performance ahead.
Master Championship Pressure with Hypnosis
Perform Consistently
Many athletes perform exceptionally well in training but struggle to reproduce that performance in competition.
The goal of sports performance hypnosis is to help bridge that gap—allowing athletes to access the skills, confidence and mindset they have already developed.
Barry Jones and Ollie Phillips England Captain of the World Cup Rugby 7s Discussing Sub-Conscious Programming
Over the course of my career, I have worked with athletes across many different sports, including Olympic, national, professional, collegiate and high-level club competitors.
While every sport has its own unique demands, the mental challenges athletes face are often remarkably similar:
Performing under pressure
Maintaining confidence
Managing expectations
Recovering after setbacks
Staying focused during competition
Trusting training when it matters most
Who I Work With
What Athletes/Coaches Say
“Barry is a Magician with the human mind.”
Marianne Berglund Ph.D. Former World Champion 10 times National Champion Two-time Olympic Cyclist
“My two Division 1 college athletes have worked with Barry and the experience has been transformative. He combines performance coaching with hypnosis and the results have been clear both in competition and in their overall mindset. He has an intuitive understanding of athletes’ psychology and has taken an individualized approach for both children - two very different athletes. The impact has been profound - better performance, more consistent, stronger mindset, and greater confidence in high pressure moments. Both athletes are so grateful to be working on their mental game with Barry. Highly recommend! ”
— H. Yeager
“Too bad you’re not on staff — Imagine? Thank you again for helping make our team one of the Nation’s best.””
— Lynn Rogers, Titan Gymnastics, California State University, Fullerton
“Our coaching staff recognised a significant improvement in our players to play relaxed in pressure situations. Our free throw percentage went from 64.28 to 78.68.”
— R. Johnson, Palomar Basketball.
“Barry Jones is a gift to the world. His compassion, experience, and expertise in his field has been an incredible benefit to my athlete son and by extension to me as well. Through both injury and competition, Barry has walked alongside my son as a huge support. In a world where we don’t always have “a village” alongside us, Barry fills in some of those gaps as more than a practitioner but as a human who goes above and beyond to support his clients. Our lives have been enriched by knowing Barry”
— Dawn Brady
Your Physical Preparation Got You Here. Your Mental Performance Can Take You Further.
You have already invested time, effort and dedication into becoming the athlete you are today.
The next step may be developing the mental skills that allow you to perform with greater confidence, focus and consistency.
If you would like to explore how sports performance hypnosis could support your goals, I would welcome the opportunity to speak with you.
Barry Jones founder and coach of California Polytechnic University and California State University Fullerton. Winning both of their division championships
Why Work With Barry Jones?
My approach combines decades of practical experience working with athletes with a strong foundation in research and performance psychology.
I understand performance from both perspectives:
As a practitioner, having worked with athletes across multiple sports and levels.
And as an athlete myself, having experienced the demands of endurance competition, including completing Ironman Hawaii.
This combination allows me to understand not only the science of performance, but also the emotional reality athletes experience when they step into competition.
Barry Jones Hawaii Triathlon World Championships
The Science Behind Sports Performance Hypnosis
It is now generally accepted (from the evidence of brain scans) that there is a measurable alteration to the brain when ‘hypnosis’ is present compared with when hypnosis is not present(1)(2).
Thus, the issue of whether there is (or is not) a thing called ‘hypnosis’ is currently settled.
A 2019 research article titled, Hypnosis In The Clutch(3), found that hypnosis-based intervention enhanced self-confidence by causing the participants to believe they could produce exceptional performances. This study is worth highlighting in training, because a wealth of evidence suggests self-confidence is one of the most important psychological variables associated with optimal performance in sports(4).
How Hypnosis Improves Sports Performance: The Science Explained
Athletes I Have Helped
Every athlete has a different journey.
Some are preparing for Olympic or national competition.
Some are trying to overcome a confidence barrier.
Some are returning after injury.
Some simply know they have more potential than they are currently showing.
The common factor is the desire to perform closer to their true ability.
Working on Hypnosis and Imagery with Emily Rooke National Trampolining Champion
Your Physical Preparation Got You Here. Your Mental Performance Can Take You Further.
You have already invested time, effort and dedication into becoming the athlete you are today.
The next step may be developing the mental skills that allow you to perform with greater confidence, focus and consistency.
If you would like to explore how sports performance hypnosis could support your goals, I would welcome the opportunity to speak with you.
England 7s World Rugby World Series Team, San Diego Experiencing Hypnosis With Barry Jones MSc. Coach Ben Ryan. Team: Kevin Barrett, Isoa Damudamu, Ben Gollings, Dan Norton, Ollie Phillips, James Rodwell, Charlie Simpson-Daniel, Rob Vickerman, Ben Jones and Andy Vilk
