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Cognitive Performance vs. Mental Skills Training — Are We Getting It Wrong?

This week Alex and Drew sit down with Kat, a cognitive performance specialist, to ask a question that sounds simple but isn't: are we actually training cognition — or just calling things cognitive training?

The answer, it turns out, is mostly the latter. We're buying expensive tech, running chess drills, and staring at doorknobs. And almost none of it transfers to performance when it actually counts.

This one gets into near vs. far transfer, why brain training apps don't work the way we think they do, what orbital warfare has to do with any of this, and why expertise might be the best fatigue management tool we have.

If you work in human performance, coach athletes, or just want to understand why the thing you're doing might not be doing what you think it's doing — this episode is for you.

Mentioned in this episode:

Chase & Simon (1973) — the foundational chess study on expert vs. novice memory

NASA Task Load Index (TLX) — search it, bookmark it, the website is genuinely excellent

The Tyranny of Metrics by Jerry Mueller — referenced again, still relevant, still not on the podcast

Think and Fight Drills / Maneuver Chess — US Naval Institute Press, Marine Corps Times, War on the Rocks

Cognitive Performance Training Level One — listed as a resource on the H2F mental domain page, worth reading critically

NeuroTracker — they're welcome to come on and make their case

Ready to train with a program that actually makes sense?

The Mops and Moes bundle on Train Heroic — built around real principles, not gimmicks. Get access here!

Views expressed are those of the speakers and do not represent any official organization.

Cognitive Performance Training with Kathleen Oswald