Mental Performance for the moments that matter

Most athletes lose performance not from lack of ability — but because their attention drifts at the wrong moment and they misread pressure as a threat. At STATS, we train the cognitive systems that control both.

I’m Foday Conteh,

I'm Foday Conteh — a Mental Performance Coach based in Dallas, Texas, working with competitive and elite athletes who know they have more in them. My approach is built on two evidence-based frameworks. Attention Control Theory tells us that under pressure, the brain's attentional system becomes hijacked — focus shifts toward threat cues instead of task-relevant information. Cognitive Appraisal Theory tells us that how you interpret a high-stakes moment — threat or challenge — dictates how your brain and body respond. I train both. Using FitLights, and structured cognitive drills, we don't just talk about focus — we stress-test it, measure it, and build it rep by rep. The result is an athlete who stays locked in when it counts, makes faster decisions under fatigue, and reframes pressure as fuel instead of a threat.

A man with a bald head and beard smiling, wearing a beige suit and T-shirt with a cartoon of two basketball players, standing next to a table of stacked books.

About Foday

Most Effective

Starter

Mental Performance Sessions

6-session Block

The right starting point for athletes ready to train their mental game with intention.

$300

$50 per session

Cognitive baseline assessments throughout
6 virtual 1-on-1 coaching sessions
Attention control + focus training
Pressure appraisal work (threat → challenge)
Personalized drill progressions
FitLights add-on available +$35/session

Select

10-Session Block

FitLights In-Person Session Upgrade

Where real cognitive rewiring happens. Enough reps to make attention control and pressure composure automatic.

$450

$45 per session - save $50 vs starter rate

Everything in the 6-Session Block
10 virtual 1-on-1 coaching sessions
Mid-block progress check-in
Cognitive load progressions across the block
Scenario-based decision-making drills
End-of-block performance summary
FitLights add-on available +$35/session

Select

Swap any virtual session for an in-person FitLights session at Foday's training location in Dallas, TX. Professional-grade reaction and cognitive training equipment — setup and coaching included.

+$35 Per session

Activates the visual cortex, prefrontal cortex, and cerebellum through light-based reaction drills
Real-time reaction time and accuracy tracking
Randomized multi-sensory stimuli that mirror live competition pressure
Available with any session block — use as many or as few as you want

What Can I help you with?

Customized mental performance services designed to meet your goals—whether you're an athlete, coach, or team. From proven strategies to actionable tools, I help you build the mindset and systems needed to perform under pressure and grow with purpose.

Your attention has a pattern. We find it, map it, and retrain it. Individual sessions are built around your sport, your pressure points, and the specific moments where your focus or composure has cost you. We use assessment data, cognitive load tools, and appraisal reframing to build a mental performance system personalized to how your brain actually works under stress.
Pressure doesn't care if it's one athlete or a whole roster. Team sessions build a shared mental performance language — so when it's 4th and goal, or a playoff overtime, every player knows how to redirect attention and appraise the moment as a challenge, not a crisis. Programs are tailored to your sport, season stage, and culture.
Great coaches already shape attention — through rep selection, practice design, and how they talk about pressure. This service sharpens those instincts with evidence-based frameworks. We help coaching staffs build practice environments that train attentional control deliberately, and develop language that shifts athletes from threat appraisal to challenge appraisal when stakes are highest.
The boardroom has its own version of 4th and goal. High-stakes presentations, critical decisions under uncertainty, leading a team through adversity — these are cognitive performance problems. We bring the same attention control and cognitive appraisal frameworks used with elite athletes into leadership and organizational contexts.