Top athletes and novices alike are being invited to take part in an introductory mental performance coaching course in Bisham Abbey on Saturday, 30 April.

The half day event, which is being run by My A-Game mind coach Paul Hewitt, is aimed at improving the mental skills which form an integral part of any successful sportsperson’s psychology.

Hewitt, who is also a freestyle jet skier and uses Little Marlow’s Westhorpe Park as his home lake, believes the impact of the various mental skills and exercises taught at the session can be huge.

“As an athlete, you build up these beliefs that you can’t do a certain thing based on very flimsy evidence,” Hewitt explained.

“It could be something as simple as being told you are not good at something or thinking you never do well at a certain venue.

“The introductory session is about giving people the skills to know how to deal with those beliefs which are not always based on fact. It can have a big impact on people at all levels of sport.”

The course is open to people of any skill level and will teach participants about mental rehearsal, positive self-talk and the relationship between the conscious and unconscious brain among other areas.

With more high profile sporting figures now turning to mental coaching to gain an advantage, it is widely accepted that psychology plays as important a role as physicality in success.

Hewitt highlights tennis player Johanna Konta, who has hailed the impact of a psychologists in her rise up the world rankings, as an example of the success mental coaching can have.

The 24-year-old has gone from relative obscurity to world number 21 in the last year.

At 48 Hewitt is nearing the end of his own sporting career, but the Jet Skier will compete at the European Championships later this year, and says practicing the techniques he preaches has helped him.

“I have used some of the techniques myself and for me that is quite important. If I can speak about how it has benefitted me in my own sport it will help other people see the benefits,” he said.

“I can’t train on the water every day, my body won’t allow me to, but I train six days a week with mental preparation and one day a week on the water.

“I had a two year break from the sport and started the coaching and used the techniques to help on my return to European Championships in London last year.”

Tickets for the session cost £87.90 and more information can be found by calling 07792 930980, emailing myagamecoaching@gmail.com or clicking here.