I work with a lot of over-achievers. Former athletes who’ve found tremendous success in the business world, and academic geniuses who’ve naturally rose the ranks in their organization.
People who are well-respected and highly successful by all measures.
They have made their way by existing in the zone of excellence, which is where 99% most high-performers exist.
But very few over-achievers ever truly achieve greatness.
I’m talking the 1% that truly become exceptional.
When you look at some of the most exceptional leaders of our time, most have several things in common:
- They overcame tremendous adversity in their lives which fueled their desire to be exceptional
- They are willing to be radically honest with themselves, recognize their upper limits and meet themselves at the level where deep transformation can take place.
- They had help from a coach or mentor.
There are a lot of people who want to become exceptional. But it is a very small percentage who will actually realize their full potential. And the ones who do will most likely get support.
Here’s what some of the most exceptional leaders in the world have to say:
“A coach is someone who always makes you do what you don’t want to do so you can be who you’ve always wanted to be.”
Leeman Bennet, American football coach
“The one thing that people are never good at is seeing themselves as others see them. A coach really, really helps.”
Bill Gates, Founder of Microsoft
“[Coaching helps you] stop the crazy mind chatter in your head that tells you all the time that you’re not good enough.”
Eric Schmidt, CEO of Google
“Something bad has happened to everybody on the planet. But if you continue to tell that story to yourself, that that is who you are, it will continue to be true. But it doesn’t have to be that way.”
Oprah Winfrey
“A coach just has a different perspective. Still to this day, the best have coaches because the coach can see what you can’t see because you’re in the forest, they’re outside of it.”
Hugh Jackman, Award-winning actor, singer and producer
Curious who else has worked with a coach?
- Athletes Tiger Woods, Serena Williams Michael Phelps.
- Executives Henry McKinnell, CEO of Pfizer, Meg Whitman, CEO of eBay, and David Pottruck, CEO of Charles Schwab & Co.
- Barrack Obama, Bill Clinton, Leonardo DiCaprio, Chuck Liddel
Want more proof?
The attitude around coaching has changed drastically in the last ten years. What was once a stigma (“You’re so broken you need a coach?”) has become status symbol (“You’re so valuable you get a coach?”).
- Microsoft hires coaches for all their young elite leaders
- Between 25 and 40% of Fortune 500 Companies invest in coaches for their most promising executives
- In one 2004 study, executive coaching at Booz Allen Hamilton, the business consultants firm, returned $7.90 for every $1 the firm spent on coaching.~ MetrixGlobal
- “The benefits of coaching appear to win over even the most cynical clients within just a few weeks.” ~ Money Magazine
- Employees at Nortel Networks estimate that coaching earned the company a 529% “return on investment and significant intangible benefits to the business,” according to calculations prepared by Merrill C. Anderson, a professor of clinical education at Drake University.~ Psychology Today
- Employers are shocked at how high their ROI numbers are for coaching. A large employer in the hospitality industry saved between $30 million and $60 million by coaching its top 200 executives. ~ Accenture, Alastair Robertson, Manager of worldwide leadership development
Ready to Take the Next Step?
If you’re interested in learning how this can work for you, book a Clarity Call which will help you see where our work together might begin.
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