Elli VanDeYacht
Mountain High Mindset
M.A. Sport & Performance Psychology
AASP Certified Mental Performance Consultant
Elli helps individuals build the confidence, self-awareness, and resilience needed to navigate pressure and adversity with greater intention. Her work focuses on developing practical mental skills while helping people stay connected to their values, motivation, and enjoyment of what they do.
Areas of Focus
Rebuilding Confidence · Self-Trust · Stress & Fear Management · Navigating Adversity · Values & Purpose
Her Approach
Elli takes a strengths-based approach centered on awareness, self-efficacy, and compassion toward the self. She helps people better understand their values, recognize what they need in challenging moments, and develop mental skills that support more intentional action. Her work emphasizes building resilience in a way that feels grounded, practical, and sustainable.
Her Why
Elli’s own experience in competitive sport taught her how easy it can be to lose connection with yourself when expectations take over. She has also experienced the challenge of being repeatedly pulled away from the activities she loves by injury, which has given her a deep appreciation for the mental side of setbacks, recovery, and returning to performance. At the same time, sport and outdoor spaces have given her a strong sense of purpose and community, reinforcing how powerful the right people and environment can be. Those experiences continue to guide her work today as she helps individuals develop resilience, strengthen self-trust, and create a healthier, more meaningful relationship with performance.
Experience
Elli has worked with performers across competitive sport and high-demand environments, including alpine ski racing, soccer, volleyball, cheer, fire academy training, and NCAA Division I athletics. Her graduate work also included concussion research and collaboration with Denver Athletics, where she co-facilitated an injury support and mental skills group for collegiate athletes.