Finding Forward

May 30

Mentally Tough: How Grit and Resiliency Help to Create Sustained Well-being in a World of Uncertainty

Event Details

May 30, 2024

Finding Forward welcomes certified performance consultant and author of Beyond Grit, Cindra Kamphoff, PhD, for an event dedicated to mental health and resilience. Dr. Kamphoff works with elite athletes to improve their mental game. She’ll be joined in conversation by University of St. Thomas Psychology Professor and Men's Basketball Head Coach, Johnny Tauer, PhD., who has spoken extensively on motivation and the relationships between youth athletes and parents, and Josh Metellus, safety for the Minnesota Vikings, who had a breakout season in 2023 playing the most snaps of any NFL player.

Following Dr. Kamphoff’s keynote address, the discussion with Dr. Kamphoff, Dr. Tauer and Metellus will be moderated by Star Tribune Senior Assistant Sports Editor and President of the Associated Press Sports Editors, Naila-Jean Meyers.

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Certified Mental Performance Consultant

Cindra Kamphoff, Ph.D.

Cindra Kamphoff, PhD, CMPC, PCC, is an award-winning keynote speaker and certified professional coach for leaders, professional athletes, and championship teams. Her clients range from Verizon Wireless, Target, and Bobcat to the Minnesota Vikings.

Kamphoff also worked with the United States Olympic Track and Field team while they were in Tokyo. She is also the founder of The Mentally Strong Institute which provides one-on-one coaching services to purpose-driven leaders and athletes multiply their confidence, increase their influence, and get to their goals quicker.

Kamphoff is the author of an Amazon bestseller, Beyond Grit: Ten Powerful Practices to Gain the High Performance Edge. Her podcast, the High Performance Mindset, is ranked in the top .5% of all podcasts. She resides in Minnesota with her husband and their two teenage boys.

Minnesota Vikings Safety

Josh Metellus

Josh Metellus is a safety for the Minnesota Vikings. He played college football for the Michigan Wolverines, where he was twice named an All-Big Ten selection. He was selected by the Vikings in the 2020 NFL draft, and named Vikings 2020 Special Teams Player of the Year as part of the annual Minnesota Football Honors program. In Spring 2021, he welcomed son Joshua Syx Metellus.

Professor and St. Thomas Men's Basketball Head Coach

Johnny Tauer

Johnny Tauer, PhD, is impressive, both on the basketball court and in the classroom. A student-athlete with the Tommies from 1991-95, Tauer returned to his alma matter in 2000 as a professor of psychology and assistant basketball coach with his former team. In over 20 years with the program, serving as the head men's basketball coach for the last 14, Tauer has guided St. Thomas to two Division III national championships and is now leading the program through its unprecedented transition into Division I. In the classroom, Tauer's research focuses on how factors such as competition, cooperation and goal-setting affect intrinsic motivation and has been featured in several publications, specifically looking at the relationships between youth athletes, parents and motivation.

Star Tribune Moderator

Naila-Jean Meyers

Naila-Jean Meyers is the senior assistant sports editor at the Star Tribune, overseeing coverage of the Vikings/NFL and the Olympics and the department’s digital and audience strategy. She joined the Star Tribune in 2020 after 15 years as an editor in The New York Times sports department. She also previously worked at the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and the Sporting News. She grew up in Ames, Iowa, and is a graduate of Northwestern University.