Transferrable Skills: From Athletes to Executives
Choose one skill/career/hobby and perfect it. That’s what society has told us in. The truth is most highly successful people are skilled or passionate in many areas of life. They have high expectations of themselves in everything they do. But when family, career, and other responsibilities come into play, our own wellness falls to the wayside.
From my experience in law school, I understood I had to find a way to pursue my career goals while maintaining autonomy of my wellness. Prior to law school, I had been lifting weights (strength training) for about six years. It was second nature when I started law school. I maintained these habits through and after passing the bar exam.
During one of my classes, a professor and I began chatting about my experience bodybuilding. She confessed to me that some of her best students tended to be athletes because failure is built into the athletic experience.
The term “Corporate Athlete” , first coined by Dr. Jim Loehr and Tony Shwartz, applies athletic principles to the workplace, suggesting that employees perform better when they adopt strategies used by elite athletes. It emphasizes physical fitness, mental resilience, and recovery as essential components for sustained high performance in demanding work environments.
My professor didn’t seem too far off after my discovery — which all made sense in retrospect.
So what are the characteristics of a “corporate athlete”? In short, a methodology for prioritizing your energy to focus on what matters — you.
Physical Fitness: Regular physical activity is crucial for maintaining energy levels and cognitive function. A study by Loehr and Schwartz (2001) in their book "The Power of Full Engagement" argues that managing energy, not time, is key to high performance and personal renewal. Physical fitness enhances overall well-being, reduces stress, and improves productivity. Energy flows two ways in this sense. The energy you give an activity or person (outward) versus the energy you give yourself (inward). Physical fitness is another way of pouring energy back into yourself.
Mental Resilience: Mental toughness and resilience are equally important in the corporate world. The ability to manage stress and maintain focus under pressure can significantly enhance job performance. Research by Hulsheger et al. (2013) in the Journal of Applied Psychology found that mindfulness practices can reduce emotional exhaustion and increase job satisfaction. Their study showed that employees who engaged in mindfulness training experienced better emotion regulation and lower levels of burnout. All the power you have is in the present. When there’s an abundance of responsibilities, your mind gets cluttered. Practicing mindfulness keeps us focused on the things in our immediate control.
Recovery and Renewal: Just like athletes, employees need periods of rest and recovery to maintain peak performance. Strategic rest intervals, including short breaks and vacations, help to rejuvenate the mind and body. Loehr and Schwartz highlight the importance of oscillating between periods of intense work and rest to sustain high performance. An example of this is the Pomodoro Method. Schedule your self-care time and hold yourself too it like any other important meeting.
Nutrition: Proper nutrition fuels both physical and cognitive functions. Employees who maintain a balanced diet with adequate hydration, vitamins, and minerals are more likely to experience higher energy levels and better concentration. You feel less sluggish throughout the day, don’t hit evening energy crash, and are better aligned with your overall wellness goals.
The corporate athlete approach leverages the principles of physical fitness, mental resilience, strategic recovery, and nutrition to enhance workplace performance. This holistic view recognizes that peak performance is not solely about working harder, but about working smarter by managing energy and stress effectively.