Story & Lesson Highlights with Suzi Freeman of Gilbert

Suzi Freeman shared their story and experiences with us recently and you can find our conversation below.

Good morning Suzi, we’re so happy to have you here with us and we’d love to explore your story and how you think about life and legacy and so much more. So let’s start with a question we often ask: What’s more important to you—intelligence, energy, or integrity?
Integrity always comes first.
If you don’t keep the promises you make to yourself, everything else will be hard to achieve: discipline, growth, and confidence. Integrity is the foundation of self-respect. I teach this to the athletes I work with. It is extremely important if you plan to be among the top 10% of performers. If you can’t keep promises to yourself, then you won’t be able to have integrity with others. Without integrity in your relationships, connections become shallow and trust is unlikely. You can be brilliant and energetic, but if people can’t count on you, or you can’t count on yourself, it won’t matter.

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
Hi, I’m Suzi Freeman, Mental Performance Coach and Master NLP Practitioner. First and foremost, I am a mom of five and a grandma! I work exclusively with football specialists: Kickers, Punters, and Long Snappers. Most of my time is spent with high-level high schoolers and college athletes, but I’ve recently expanded into the NFL space and plan to grow further in that area in 2026.

I love this work; it brings me more joy than anything I have done in my career over the past 30 years. Watching athletes break through mental blocks and level up on the field and in life never gets old.

One exciting thing we have launched is our new group coaching program, featuring video trainings and multiple live sessions throughout the week. We have this program out for APP submission and should have it approved and open in the App stores by the end of September 2025. The Core Ze Mindset is going to change the way football specialists approach their sport.

Appreciate your sharing that. Let’s talk about your life, growing up and some of topics and learnings around that. What relationship most shaped how you see yourself?
The relationship that’s shaped me the most is the one I have with my three adult children. Watching them chase their dreams and come to me for guidance along the way showed me something powerful: raising great kids didn’t mean my work was done. I have to keep growing, evolving, and leading from the front. That meant confronting my past, pushing through limitations, and choosing not to settle. If I want to be the one they could always look up to, I have to reach for my dreams, especially the scary ones.

What fear has held you back the most in your life?
Fear of failure, ouch! That one will hold you back in every area of life if you let it. I had to get honest with myself and ask: Will this kill me? Will it harm anyone else? If not, then I have to try. No matter what.

I’ve reached a point where regret doesn’t get a place in my life. I never want to look back feeling like I gave up on myself and my dreams, and I definitely don’t want my kids to see that in me.

If my sons can risk their lives with the careers they have chosen, then I surely don’t have the right to be afraid of business, relationships, and other life risks. (My sons are police and military)

Alright, so if you are open to it, let’s explore some philosophical questions that touch on your values and worldview. What are the biggest lies your industry tells itself?
Hearing a high-performing athlete say…”I am good!” This is the biggest trap a high performer can fall into: denying the need to improve in the mental game, whether consciously or unconsciously. You may be talented, and it might be getting you places, but it won’t be sustainable. You will eventually hit a seemingly small hiccup, and it could derail everything.

They also need to understand that mental performance training is not limited to sport-specific applications. Cultivating mental resilience & gaining mental performance skills will help you in all areas of life, business, parenting, academics, and more.

But so few see it this way, right now. But I am here to help change that.

Okay, we’ve made it essentially to the end. One last question before you go. Are you doing what you were born to do—or what you were told to do?
I am doing what I was born to do. This past year, once I made a full pivot to work with the athletes, I am genuinly serving in my full purpose. This is where I am supposed to be, and these are the people I am supposed to be serving.

The reason it took me so long to get here was fear. Fear of people not appreciating or understanding my work, fear of not being good enough to serve these high performers. I let this purpose hide out of fear for over 8 years. I first felt called to work in this space back in 2017.

I am so pumped up with joy, happiness, and fulfillment after every call with my athletes. I can’t fully describe it. I don’t consider what I do work; I feel privileged every day to have the opportunity to help these athletes achieve their dreams.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.suzifreeman.com
• Instagram: @suzifreeman
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/suzifreeman/
• Twitter: https://x.com/SuziFreeman_MPC
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/coach.suzi.freeman
• Other: https://www.corezemindset.com

Image Credits
Photos are all mine no special credits needed