
My name is Val, this page will help you get the feel for who I am, what I do and why. Don’t hesitate to reach out with any additional questions, comments and compliments :)
In 2022, I retired from professional basketball after 14 looooong seasons. Being an athlete is a crazy, demanding and rewarding emotional roller-coaster of a life. Mine started at 14, when I made a solo trip to Miami to go to school and play basketball. I knew nothing of the US, HS/AAU/College, English language, peanut butter, black (or any non-white) people and I've never used the internet. Needless to say, there was a steep learning curve! You can subscribe to the newsletter where I will share more of my own and others' stories.
Let me admit something that ALL OF US go through, but rarely share: we all share internal struggles when it comes to our performance and personal lives. Even the highest level players [olympians, national team players, top scorers in the league, doesn't matter] are no strangers to any combination of the following:
Some problems do become more manageable with experience, some you accept as 'normal' and some continue messing with the quality of our lives, spilling over into performance. As athletes, we spend endless hours and amounts of money on improving our sport-specific skills so that our execution is automatic, intuitive and effective. However, every decision you make is processed by your brain. What is the total time you’ve spent on training your mind to produce the thoughts and feelings that help you get the desired results?
I loved being an athlete, its a special and limited-time experience. Unfortunately, I didn’t know the tools available to me to combat the self-defeating thoughts and feelings for most of my career. I didn’t want that to continue to be my reality - when you know better, you do better - so I started to enroll in classes, participate programs, hired outside help to try to find solutions to my problems. And this is how we got here. As a part of my athlete legacy, I'm sharing cheat-codes from the 22+ years of learning, navigating, researching and experiencing, so that each new generation of athletes, like yourself, achieves and experiences new levels of greatness.

I want you to know that I GET IT. I get the stress, I get the pressure, I get the insecurities and conflicts ON and OFF the court/field. My playing experience helps me understand and connect with athletes and athlete-minded individuals and my education gives me the tools and framework on how you can conquer your fears, manage stress and build confidence, achieve goals and so much more. I did it for myself, however late, and now I am offering you an opportunity to set yourself up for the best life experience and the highest possible performance you’re capable of. Book a free demo to get the feel for the way a session would go, ask any questions or get guidance on something you’re going through.
Doubting in your own abilities
Feeling like you aren’t good enough
Not having fun
Talking down at yourself
Having no motivation
Having anxiety from pressure to perform
Unmet expectations
Feeling like a failure
Overthinking
Impostor Syndrome
Education & Experience:
BA in Psychology [Rice University, 2008]
MA in I/O Psychology [Touro University Worldwide, 2020]
Professional Life Coach Training [iPec, 2014, ICF accredited]
Performance Dynamics Specialist [iPec, 2022, ICF accredited]
Professional Athlete 2008-2022