Making the Most of One Moment: A Practice-Responsive Approach to Applied Sport and Performance Psychology

Applied sport and performance psychology frequently unfolds in dynamic, time-pressured, and organizationally complex environments where practitioners must deliver support that is both immediately useful and supportive of athletes’ ongoing development. Contributing to address these needs, this manuscript introduces ONE+, Windy Dryden’s practice-responsive framework, and outlines its conceptual foundations and core principles for applied sport and performance contexts. Rather than prescribing specific techniques, ONE+ offers a structure through which practitioners integrate evidence, theory, and professional judgment in real time, treating each encounter as purposeful and potentially sufficient while remaining open to providing further support when appropriate. The manuscript then describes how to translate ONE+ into applied practice, detailing how the framework guides preparation, session focus, intervention pacing, consolidation, and follow-up within real-world performance environments. Emphasis is placed on collaborative contracting, contextual responsiveness, and the selection of evidence-based strategies that are feasible and actionable within applied sport settings. Finally, an applied example integrating Acceptance and Commitment Training illustrates how process-based interventions can be embedded flexibly within the ONE+ structure to align with client readiness, performance demands, and time constraints. Together, these components position ONE+ as a coherent and practical framework for structuring meaningful single-encounter work while supporting continued development beyond the session.