In this episode, McCann with host van Beek, discuss her journey to date and cover a range of topics which includes;
Chapters
Intro/Injured herself in Covid-19 (3:31) Birth place… Sibling rivalry… Childhood… (6:56) NO! To Early-Specialization in sport (10:31) High School Netball Trials/Early mindset (13:43) 7 Hockey teams in 7th form (17:10) Transitioning out of High School (21:48) Playing with your Idols (24:43) Battles with Identity (30:34) Living with other hockey girls who were succeeding (32:28) Making your Debut for the Black Sticks (40:06) Balance between Extrinsic vs Intrinsic Motivation (45:07) Rachel's best mate George Mumford, Author of the "Mindful Athlete" (51:53) How do you use Mindfulness during the day and in matches? (55:37) Missing out on Rio Olympic Squad and getting through 2017 (1:05:39) How playing Hockey in Germany 2018 changed everything (1:12:36) What are you looking forward to in the next couple of years? (1:19:16) theHappyAthlete Journey (1:23:05) How would you like to be remembered? (1:28:35)In 2017, she was dropped down to the women’s development squad and eventually left the program altogether, McCann had lost the love of the game that she fell in love with when she was eleven years old. In the midst of this frustration, Rachel started to find opportunities outside of the game. This started with gaining a diploma in Positive Psychology and a more focused effort into the practice of Mindfulness, following the teachings of well-known Mindfulness coach George Mumford. After a successful stint playing club Hockey in Germany and finding a healthy balance outside of the sport, helped Rachel re-ignite the passion for Hockey and her desire to represent New Zealand again.
She also became inspired to start sharing her knowledge and launched “The Happy Athlete”, a social media platform and podcast where she brings tools for young athletes she wished she had learnt earlier, on how to deal with stress, pressure and emotions with the mission to help athletes and people flourish and create a place where Well-Being, Mindfulness and Sports Performance meet.
Where she has got to in her sport hasn’t come easy and has been thrown some pretty big challenges but Rachel has found a way to persevere and has a bright future ahead of her.
