Books on achieving peak performance

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Books on achieving peak performance

Selected books on achieving peak performance that complement MasterClass: The Corporate Athlete.

The Only Way to Win, 2012
by: Jim Loehr

The conditioning begins early in our lives. Great achievements will bring lasting happiness and fulfillment; great achievements form the bedrock of stable self-esteem and strong character; great achievements will become the foundation for a successful life. If these well-intentioned promises are true, why does winning never seem to be enough?

In The Only Way to Win, Jim Loehr draws upon two decades of work with Fortune 500 executives; world-class athletes such as Monica Seles, Dan Jansen, and Eric Lindros; and other high achievers at the Human Performance Institute (HPI) to reveal surprising insights about achievement motivation. Specifically, Loehr finds that the blind pursuit of external achievement often results in emptiness, addiction, and, ironically, poor performance. It’s not really about what you achieve, he argues, it’s about who you become as a consequence of the chase.

As Loehr powerfully demonstrates, success at work and fulfillment in life require a complete re-purposing of achievement, one where value is derived from growth in areas such as integrity, honesty, gratefulness, humility, optimism, and compassion. To help readers start this process, he provides them with the tools they need to develop these character traits, as well as the plan they need to use them effectively.

A compelling, practical, and hopeful read filled with relatable stories and useful exercises, The Only Way to Win will serve as a powerful wake-up call for business leaders, employees, teachers, and coaches. It will also provide inspiration for readers looking to perform better, achieve more, and change both their own lives and those of the people they influence. Jim Loehr is a world-renowned performance psychologist, co-founder of the Human Performance Institute, and author of fifteen books, including his most recent, The Power of Story. He also co-authored the national bestseller The Power of Full Engagement.

The Power of Story: Change Your Story, Change Your Destiny in Business and in Life, 2008
by: Jim Loehr

In his groundbreaking new book, Dr. Jim Loehr, New York Times bestselling coauthor of The Power of Full Engagement, examines the way we tell stories about ourselves to ourselves -- and, most important, the way we can change those stories to transform our business and personal lives.  "Your story is your life," says Loehr. As human beings, we continually tell ourselves stories -- of success or failure; of power or victimhood; stories that endure for an hour, or a day, or an entire lifetime. We have stories about our work, our families and relationships, our health; about what we want and what we're capable of achieving. Yet, while our stories profoundly affect how others see us and we see ourselves, too few of us even recognize that we're telling stories, or what they are, or that we can change them -- and, in turn, transform our very destinies. 

Telling ourselves stories provides structure and direction as we navigate life's challenges and opportunities, and helps us interpret our goals and skills. Stories make sense of chaos; they organize our many divergent experiences into a coherent thread; they shape our entire reality. And far too many of our stories, says Loehr, are dysfunctional, in need of serious editing. First, he asks you to answer the question, "In which areas of my life is it clear that I cannot achieve my goals with the story I've got?" He then shows you how to create new, reality-based stories that inspire you to action, and take you where you want to go both in your work and personal life.

For decades, at the Human Performance Institute, Loehr has been examining the power of story to increase engagement and productivity, and Fortune 500 companies have paid millions to send employees to his program, in which he applies the principles and methods that he now offers in this book. Global business leaders, world-class athletes, military special forces, and thousands of individuals from every walk of life have sought out and benefited from his life-altering insight and expertise.

Our capacity to tell stories is one of our profoundest gifts. Loehr's approach to creating deeply engaging stories will give you the tools to wield the power of storytelling and forever change your business and personal life.

The Corporate Athlete Advantage: The Science of Deepening Engagement, 2008
by: Jim Loehr and Jack Groppel

On Form, 2003
by: Jim Loehr and Tony Schwartz

Four forms of energy pulse through each of us at all times: physical, emotional, mental and spiritual. To thrive, we must recruit all four of these energies in the service of a specific mission. To be fully engaged means to be physically energized, emotially engaged, mentally focused, and spiritually vested. Jim Loehr and Tony Schwartz draw on 30 years of research and experience with thousands of world-class atheletes, FBI hostage rescue teams, emergency service workers, and corporate executives who must sustain high performance in the face of pressure. In this book they offer their precise understanding of how to help individuals and organizations manage energy to drive full engagement - along with a step-by step programme to make that happen.

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