ABOUT DR. ADAM WRIGHT

I help high performers build the internal infrastructure to lead, adapt, and perform under pressure—mentally, emotionally, and physically.

I’m a licensed psychotherapist, Certified Mental Performance Consultant (CMPC), and Professional Certified Coach (PCC), with more than two decades of experience guiding elite performers across sport, business, medicine, law, tactical professions, and the arts.

My work integrates mental conditioning, physical readiness, neuroscience, and clinical depth. This isn’t about hacks or hype—it’s about developing durable systems for resilience, clarity, and sustainable performance in complex environments.

I currently serve as Director of Mental Performance for the Washington Nationals and co-founded The Antifragile Academy, a leadership initiative dedicated to helping individuals grow stronger through intentional challenge.

From Philosophy to Performance

My foundation began in philosophy—studying meaning, consciousness, and human flourishing. After time in corporate America, I shifted toward applied physiology and began bridging physical training with psychological insight. That intersection—mind, body, and meaning—has shaped my entire career.

Clinical Depth Meets Performance Science

Early on, I saw that physical readiness alone wasn’t enough. High achievers often looked the part but struggled with burnout, identity confusion, and pressure beneath the surface. That tension led me to pursue doctoral work in sport and exercise psychology under Dr. Michael Sachs and clinical training through a master’s in mental health counseling at the Boston Graduate School of Psychoanalysis.

My approach draws from both cognitive-behavioral and psychodynamic frameworks, allowing me to work at the level of skill and strategy as well as belief, identity, and emotion. I help clients integrate emotional experience with performance demands—building self-awareness, adaptability, and capacity under pressure.

Real-World Application

This work is designed for real conditions. I’ve taught psychology and exercise science at the university level and consulted across high-stakes fields. My client base includes MLB, NFL, and MLS athletes, Olympic hopefuls, European PGA golfers, international rugby and lacrosse players, actors, writers, and leaders in law enforcement and special operations.

In the corporate and professional sectors, I’ve coached executives at Goldman Sachs, J.P. Morgan, Citadel, McKinsey, Google, and others across venture capital, private equity, and tech. I’ve also supported startup founders, trauma surgeons, professional runners, and collegiate All-Americans.

I’ve presented to global institutions including the United Nations, Sony Music, and partners at top law firms—helping high-level performers navigate complexity, reset under pressure, and lead with clarity.

My Philosophy

Performance isn’t a mindset—it’s a system. It’s not about feeling motivated. It’s about having something solid to fall back on when motivation fades.

I help clients build that system—mentally, emotionally, and physically. Through structure, repetition, and depth, we train the architecture beneath performance so it holds when conditions break down. The goal is growth through pressure, clarity in chaos, and something that lasts.

This philosophy comes from two decades of working in thin-margin environments, where adaptation, recovery, and internal alignment aren’t optional.

I’ve laid out this framework in ten performance pillars shaped by clinical insight, lived experience, and thousands of hours with high performers navigating pressure, transition, and internal tension.

For People Who Don’t Usually Seek Support

Many of the people I work with never planned to ask for help. They’re high-functioning, self-reliant, and often skeptical of anything that feels soft or surface-level. Some carry a diagnosis. Most don’t. But they share a deep drive to stay sharp, aligned, and in command of how they show up.

Whether the goal is peak performance, a complete reset, or working through something that's been buried under years of achievement, the process is the same: build the internal capacity to meet life directly and grow from it.

Not motivation. Not mindset tricks. The real work, based on trust and mutual respect.

Credentials

  • Licensed Associate Counselor (LAC) – State of New Jersey

  • Professional Certified Coach (PCC) – International Coaching Federation

  • Certified Mental Performance Consultant (CMPC) – Association for Applied Sport Psychology

  • Certified Exercise Physiologist (EP-C) – American College of Sports Medicine

  • Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) – National Strength and Conditioning Association

  • Registered Provider – U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee (Mental Health and Performance)

  • Education

  • Ph.D., Kinesiology – Psychology of Movement: Applied Sport & Exercise Psychology
    Temple University

  • M.Ed., Kinesiology – Psychology of Movement: Applied Sport & Exercise Psychology
    Temple University

  • M.A., Clinical Mental Health Counseling
    Boston Graduate School of Psychoanalysis

  • B.A., Philosophy/Psychology
    LaSalle University – Maxima Cum Laude, Psi Chi, Pi Kappa Phi

  • Graduate Certificate, Organizational Behavior & Executive Coaching
    University of Texas at Dallas