| Although consulting with performers continues to be a foundational component within the field of applied sport psychology, the perceptions of exceptional consultants regarding what they do remains somewhat of a mystery. A wealth of research has been conducted evaluating the characteristics of effective sport psychology intervention programs, as well as characteristics of effective consultants, but little has been done to determine what, if anything, the truly outstanding consultants are doing differently in their work. The purpose of this study was to provide an in-depth description of what these individuals are doing in their consulting work that sets them apart.; Open-ended, conversational interviews were conducted with 12 ( N = 12) exceptional applied sport psychology consultants scattered around North America. These individuals were chosen through a snowball sample of professionals in the field of sport psychology asked simply to identify who they felt were the best applied consultants. Once this list of exceptional consultants had been generated, nominations were rank ordered, with the top 12 included in the interview phase.; Interviews were inductively content analyzed with data formulated from 532 individual meaning units into progressively higher order and common themes. From this analysis, six major categories emerged: (a) sense of self, in which the participants discussed their perceptions of who they are and the personality characteristics that contribute to their sense of identity; (b) athlete-centered approach to consulting, which addressed how their underlying epistemology and use of counseling skills contribute to an effective counseling environment; (c) experience, which examined the critical components of personal and professional evolution along the path to expertise; (d) sense of fulfillment, in which the participants discussed elements that both contribute and detract from their career satisfaction; (e) external support, the category identifying how others contribute to the consultant's ability; and finally, (f) elusive factors, where the participants addressed the notion that in addition to all the previously identified elements contributing to their expertise, there are still other components involved that were much more difficult to conceptualize.; From this analysis, it would seem that several common themes are prevalent in the creation of an outstanding applied sport psychology consultant. Yet, a closer examination of the data indicates that although all of these consultants are deemed outstanding, each arrives at this designation in his or her own unique way. This phenomenon is interpreted and several recommendations for further study are provided. |
