Hello, my name is Jason Brennan & I am the founder of Thinkwell. I have been a psychotherapist for over 20 years & have helped many people grow & develop in themselves, in the work they do & in the relationships they have.
The services I provide through Thinkwell are focused on Personal & Professional Development – through workshop based learning, one on one coaching & psychotherapy support. The primary methodology I use is Transactional Analysis & I share this theory through:
If you would like to know more, please click one of the boxes below & start your journey to us working together. I look forward to supporting you.
Client Testimonials
The sessions have been very practical, focusing on the issues at hand. This has been where the real value has come, because the issues are completely relevant.
Everything we have discussed is geared towards me becoming a more effective leader. A key theme from the sessions has been setting boundaries, communicating clearly, and learning to negotiate properly. These are essential skills for any leader (and to be honest, anyone in life).
Jason has been the Mental Skills Coach for the WHITE FERNS. In that time, he has made a positive impact to the team and individuals. Jason is responsible for developing and monitoring individual mental skills plans to support players through the pressures of international cricket. He is also responsible for educating players and support staff around welfare, health and performance. Through his work with individuals and as a team he has helped build the belief of the entire group which has resulted in a greater level of consistency and performance.
Thanks so much for your guidance and support. I’ve learnt a lot off your teachings. Thanks again for making me a better person and better coach.
While there are many factors that go into any campaign there is no doubt that the mental skills platform is one part of a team’s progress. The success on the field and Jason’s work has resulted in managers and players seeing the value of his work and the program. Jason has had the challenge of trying to establish some good base learning across teams and groups while offering up individual support. I am firmly of the view that the winning of the Super rugby title in the clubs 21 year history is linked to the growth and development of our players in the mental, holistic and leadership pillars.
For many years I only had a plan for the physical aspects of my game with only a small consideration for my mental game. Jason helped me to identify the importance of having a Mental plan alongside it. The tools he provided weren’t difficult at all and more importantly helped me immediately both on and off the field.
I think the main value I have gained so far from our coaching sessions has been the sounding board where I have been allowed the head space to work through some challenges with my teams. I gained verification, acknowledgement, and confidence in each instance which was both useful and powerful. Also tying these situations back to the T.A. (Transactional Analysis) principles helped me to better understand the underlying drivers and where my focus was or needed to be.
Probably the most valuable thing that I have got out of the sessions is that they are an excellent way to step outside the day-to-day detail of what I do, and to think strategically about where my team is heading, and how we get there, and what I can do to help this. As a coach you bring a lot of clarity to my thinking on my leadership, as being external you have the ability to view issues simply.
Jas I thought you have had a great influence over the Hurricanes over the last few years and as you know mental skills plays a major part within any professional sporting team and I saw the Hurricanes make significant advances in this area over the time you were involved. Mental skills can be a complicated subject but when it is explained in simple terms it can have a massive impact and I believe you were able to do this for the team. Cheers mate.
A crucial part of High Performance at the Hurricanes is our Mental Skills Programme. Jason worked as the Mental skills provider for the Hurricanes during the 2014/5/6 seasons. The programme has grown and developed to a point where at the end of season reviews nearly all squad members commented on how much it had contributed to a successful season. The feedback also stated that it was a must to continue into the future, and to further develop both the programme and the content was crucial to future success. Over the two seasons Jason has gained the respect of both players and management resulting in improved on and off field performance.
I’ve been really impressed that my company has invested in this coaching. It’s the first time they have invested in across-the-board formal coaching for First Level Leaders and Managers.For me, this has been an opportunity for personal and in-depth coaching in an area that I’ve not had covered in any training previously, and where I’m not as strong as I need to be. I’m learning and practising new styles of communication, and working through ways to communicate issues with my managers as they come up. As well as helping me communicate better with my managers, the skills I’m learning are helping me to better communicate with my staff. I’m better able to put myself in their position if they are themselves having issues communicating with me or others. What I’m learning in the coaching is very transferable.
As a professional rugby player I have constantly tried to find that ‘edge’. That something that will give me an advantage over my opposition. Working one on one with Jason showed me the mental tools to call upon to enable me to perform to my best and I continue to use those today. Everyone knows how performance can vary significantly even though there has been very little change in your physical attributes or physical preparation. I truly believe the mind is the key that can unlock true potential, or conversely, hold you back.From a team point of view, I noticed huge changes in our ‘energy’ and ‘connections’ from our sessions with Jase and I believe that alone got us through a number of games on the right side of the ledger.
Jason spent considerable time during the pre-season working with the team to create their Vision, Values and Mission statement by which the team wanted to be known. He also met with players individually throughout the season to assist them with their mental preparation both for trainings and games. His knowledge of what makes high performing teams tick is endless. Jason’s commitment to his role is more than just work, I believe it comes from a devotion to helping others and providing care to those in need.
Jason Brennan is an extremely competent Sports Psychotherapist. He worked with our team for approximately twelve months and the players benefited enormously from his input. Jason utilised his communication skills and comprehensive theoretical knowledge in Sports Psychotherapy to assist with the mental preparation of the Wellington Phoenix Football Team.
I know that some of the tools that Jason introduced me to has made me more resilient and therefore more successful as a leader. I know my staff would thank Jason for his input as I grew to cope with the stress, it changed my engagement with staff in a positive way and ultimately improved the culture of our organization.
I do not think I would be gaining anything like this depth of understanding and experience in any other forum than 1-1 with a skilled coach. It is also great to have the ongoing sessions as that really means growth and consolidation of new approaches is possible. It seems like having something poured in a meaningful way helps to change the nature and quality of what can be given out.
I’ve found the coaching sessions to be extremely beneficial. I have found far more confidence in myself as a leader as a result of the sessions we have had. I don’t think I would have been as successful in turning around my relationship with one team leader without the sessions.I think the sessions I’ve had have proved extremely valuable in the recent round of performance discussions with staff. I’ve been able to have open and honest discussions with each of my staff around their performance and my expectations of them.
Jason is very effective at communicating between the players and management and has the ability to bridge the gap that exist in a team environment which has at one end, players that think… “This mental skills is for mentally weak people through to players that recognise this as the MOST important skill set in a professional rugby players armour…”. He moulded these two ends of the spectrum and those in between which lead to a number of benefits. These benefits were:
- More confidence to speak up and demand in a positive way
- More open and honest discussions amongst our leadership group
- A collective agreement on how we deal with success and failure
- The ability to harness a groups energy through success and adversity at the time needed e.g. in game.
When working with a mental skills coach in a team environment it is important that the players can trust that the sensitive nature of some conversations are not being fed back to the management and vice versa. I always found Jason to be extremely professional in this regard.
Hay Jason, thanks for helping me with techniques that enabled me to deal with high pressure situation’s and how to walk towards those challenges. Cheers Mate.
Companies I Have Worked With
