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From cricket to golf, see how John Novak’s mindset coaching is making headlines across elite sport.
See Newspaper articles, radio features and press coverage highlighting John Novak’s impact on elite athlete performance across all sports.
Article excerpt… “Weatherald instead spent a solid fortnight in Hobart working on issues that emerged after being exposed to high pace on bouncy, seaming surfaces.
He sought the opinions of Scollay, Michael Smith and Michael di Venuto (the batting coaches of Tasmania and Australia respectively) as well his personal mindset coach, John Novak.”
Article excerpt… “He is mentally tougher now, as he has a private mental performance coach, John Novak, who keeps him in the optimal frame of mind. “Mindset coaching helps cricketers reproduce their best self in mind, body, emotion and spirit, enabling them to repeat their best consistently, particularly in high-pressure matches.
“As with all athletes, including Jake, it’s about identifying and tailoring the best mindset scripts for different match situations, using breathwork strategically and creating specific visualisations and affirmations that link to their goals and targets,” Novak told this publication.
Article excerpt… “Dallin insisted he didn’t need to talk to a professional, but afterwards, he declared it was the “best thing” he could’ve done. He still consults John today.
“He helped Dall with resilience,” Purdy says. “He’s the king of resilience now – physically, mentally, emotionally … The biggest difference is the effort he’s put into his mental health.”
John helped Dallin recognise that his greatest motivation is his family and ensured he allocated adequate time to them to fuel his wellbeing.”
A lawyer, former karate champion and now head of sports management at the International College of Management in Manly, Novak developed his ”Boomerang Effect Sports Mindgame” program over 20 years working with various elite athletes and teams.
The aim of Novak’s boomerang effect – ”what you put out is what you get back” – is to create a positive mindset. Novak’s golden rule – prominently displayed in the Manly sheds on grand final day – is: ”Words, thoughts and actions always positive. No exceptions. Every day in every way. 24/7 on!”
Article excerpt… “Instead of deflecting a question about the role of psychologist John Novak, Hasler told the audience how Novak not only worked with players but with office staff, coaches and even sponsors.”
Article excerpt… “He lives and breathes his sport. I don’t think he was in a good system and a lot of things in the Olympic campaign hindered him. Everything he is doing now, in the pool, in the press, in the moment, is positive. Everything is about maximum optimisation of best self.”
Article excerpt… “The holy grail is the consistent application to the little things. To do everything an athlete needs to do technically, tactically, strategically, mentally is here [points to his brain]. The whole program is to tick off on quality – an 8.5 in every key area.”
Article excerpt… ”Everyone is different. He doesn’t put a blanket over everyone. He works on individuals and see what it takes them to get up.
”He’ll have a chat with you and push you so you can get there mentally. I’ve come back from a knee reconstruction, so I’ve had a fair bit to do with him to be positive. He has really helped.”
Article excerpt… ”Wu spent time this year galvanising her mental reserves, and focussing her live-wire energy in sessions with John Novak, who, apart from being the Head of Mind Management for the NRL’s Canterbury Bulldogs also developed a program called the Boomerang Effect that was adopted by a number of elite athletes, including Australia’s superfish, James Magnussen.
The Boomerang Effect is a process which demands positive thoughts and words; it states the energy you put out is returned; it also develops a realisation of the decisions that either help or hinder you and, in time, it becomes a lifestyle. Wu, whose cover of her journal proclaims: “You’re strange . . . I like it”, said the sessions provided a clarity.”
Article excerpt… ”I haven’t said this publicly before but his performance to win in Barcelona was just incredible because he was still, I believe and I know John Novak (mind coach) and Brant Best (coach) believe, he was still nowhere near in the place he was pre-London from a mental scarring perspective.
I’m probably more determined now than ever to get back to my best and really start refocusing and resetting some goals.”
Article excerpt… ”Warner says he has only the odd drink now, and initially gave up alcohol altogether. He also uses a mind coach, John Novak – who has worked extensively with golfers and rugby league players, as well as Falzon – to help channel his aggression into positive thoughts.
“It gave me something to work on. It was not just alcohol stuff. It was about getting older and giving myself the best opportunity to stay on the park.”
Article excerpt… ”While a two-year contract extension looked a fait accompli for Hasler midway through last year, the Bulldogs late-season slide saw those negotiations stall and a clean-out of some of his most trusted staffers in recent months.
Sports scientist Liz Marin, sprint coach Clayton Kearney, mind specialist John Novak and trusted recruitment guru Noel Cleal have all made way.”
Article excerpt… ”With a resilient mind, anything is possible. This is what John Novak the Mindset Coach teaches his hundreds of clients.
From Olympians, national sides, and the Sea Eagles in the NRL, John has helped athletes break mental barriers to get the most out of their potential.”
Description excerpt… ”John’s philosophy of achieving one’s “best self” has been applied across sport, business and personal development. His clients include Olympians James Magnussen and Melissa Wu, NRL teams such as the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs, Sydney Roosters and Manly Warringah Sea Eagles, and leading corporations including Telstra, Ernst & Young, Coca-Cola, Reebok, Flight Centre, ANZ and Commonwealth Bank.”
Long before John Novak became Australia’s leading sports mindset coach, he was turning heads for an entirely different reason – being one of the most academically qualified fitness personalities on national television.
Article excerpt… “But Mr Novak is not just a body. He is completing a PhD in political science, and has already earned a law degree from Sydney University and a master’s degree at George Washington University.
“I believe in living by Plato’s credo: able body, able mind.”
Article excerpt… “Yet, like most tough personalities, Weatherald bounced back. He needed help and he sought the same after being egged on by his wife Rachel, who Scollay believes has played a massive part in getting Weatherald to where he is today. A strong relationship with Dr. John Novak, a renowned sports psychologist in Australia, was another instrumental factor in Weatherald getting back to loving the sport he has spent his whole life playing.”
Article excerpt… “He works with a private mental performance coach, John Novak, to help get himself into the optimal frame of mind to perform at his best. Novak does not have many cricket clients but has worked with a range of athletes and coaches in other high-profile sports, including working with Australia’s most recent female golf major winner in Grace Kim.
“I’ve been working with him for three years now,” he explains. “His way of thinking was always about being positive and reframing everything. And it took me a while to believe in that, and to believe in that sort of mindset, to see everything is an opportunity.
Article excerpt… “Novak is a mindset coach that’s been Hasler’s mindset performance man in the NRL for the last 10 years. He is such an important piece to Manly’s puzzle that he’s been kept on even during COVID-19.
The 58-year-old teaches the importance of a positive mindset and that what you put out is what you get in return as part of the Boomerang Effect. Although he would never admit it himself, he would have played a big hand in Manly’s gritty win on the weekend.
Paris 2024 Olympic bronze medallist and 2025 World Champion, Maximillian Giuliani. ‘Johnny Novak’ as his mindset coach.
Article excerpt… “HASLER’s coaching goes far beyond tactics and statistics.
“It’s all about the power of the mind and overcoming negatives,” injured halfback Trent Hodkinson said.
“It is extremely valuable having him here.”
Article excerpt… “After the Olympics, John Novak, a mind coach who works with a number of elite athletes and the Canterbury Bulldogs, encouraged Magnussen to join him.
Novak has urged Magnussen to embrace his old self.”
Article excerpt… “James Magnussen: The big focus coming out of the Olympics has been on my mental performance. Physically I was in the best shape of my life but the mental side of things was lacking. So I’ve employed a mind coach, John Novak, to find a balance in my life in and out of the pool. The end goal is that I’m confident and assured in myself when I step on the starting blocks, not only in my ability as a racer but in my qualities as a human being.”
Article excerpt… “John works across a number of spheres. He is the author of a book called The Boomerang Effect, which is a strategy for golf,” Hasler said. ”A rugby league club is a bit like a community – like a mini-community, I guess – and John works right across the range. He works with the players and the coaching staff but he works across the admin staff, the marketing staff, the merchandise staff.”
Article excerpt… “Magnussen was primed to dive into the Glasgow Commonwealth Games pool powered by a positive energy after he’d embraced the Boomerang Effect, a program pioneered by mind doctor John Novak and his wife Theresa.”
Article excerpt… “When I think about when I first delved into this with John, and how far I’ve come forward, the boomerang effect has helped me a lot,” Reynolds said. “The main thrust is being positive and making the right choices in everyday life.
“The last two or three years I’ve worked with John have helped me. There’s days as a footballer where you can find yourself down in the dumps about things – something someone has written about you that’s wrong, for instance.”
Article excerpt… “Best known as the mysterious mind guru who helped guide Canterbury Bulldogs coach Des Hasler to two NRL premierships with the Manly Sea Eagles, Novak confirmed he is working with the player recently nicknamed the “run-scoring reverend’’ by his teammates.
“Apparently that has been his nickname since I have been working with him,’’ Novak said.
“He has begun preaching about positivity and some of the different mind techniques I have been teaching him.’’
Article excerpt… “Indeed, during his darkest stretch of 16 months, Taupau sought help from esteemed mind coach John Novak.
“I actually spoke to a few people, including John,’’ he says. “I needed to clear my head; clear my thinking process.”
Article excerpt… “The camp commenced on Sunday afternoon whereby the players were split into groups and attended physical preparation sessions conducted by JNJG physiotherapist Matthew Green and Strength and Conditioning Coach Chris Smith. Players learnt about injury prevention, golf motor pattern and postural drills, pre-and post-performance warm up and recovery routines. The players also learnt about the physical attributes of the modern athletic golfer and undertook a circuit class whereby they trained in the academy weights and workout room.
During the evening they attended lectures by Mind Management Coach of the Canterbury Bankstown Bulldogs, John Novak and also tour player Woon Jon Lee.”
Description excerpt… “John Novak is well recognised as a mind trainer for many elite athletes. His motivation and drive stimulates strong mental preparation that promotes the mindset one needs to achieve success. These practices are often translated in the boardroom allowing staff and management to get focused and succeed.”
Description excerpt… “John utilises Zen concepts attained through years of training, competing and instruction in martial arts. John firmly believes – “The key to success in my field is to deeply understand the individual I am working with to clearly identify their best self in respect to their mind, body, spirit and emotions. I help my clients facilitate their brilliance.”
Article excerpt… “And as for the Aussie self-image of “bronzed babes and fit fellas”, fitness expert John Novak says that 35 per cent of Australian women are overweight, 45 per cent of Australian men are obese and only 15 per cent of the population exercises regularly.”
Article excerpt… “HE IS the mystery guru hired to help the Roosters avoid the wooden spoon.
A former karate champion and “mind-game” specialist, John Novak has been invited into the Roosters’ inner sanctum as the club deals with a turbulent season.
A sports motivator studying for a PhD in applied psychology, Novak has been texting Roosters players daily and demanding self-assessments from the team recently dubbed a “basket case”.”