Athlete CEO #31: Facebook VP Becca Van Dyck on How to Be Elite In All Aspects Of Life

Our daily life can often look like trying to drink from the firehose with billions of pieces of information available at our fingertips, notifications from multiple devices, and the ability to join millions of conversations around the world via social media. 

We live in a world that rewards speed – how quick we think, react, and position ourselves, but thinking about more things – trying to speed up – can often lead instead to slowing down

Despite today’s reality seeming like a dream just 20-30 years ago, we can often find ourselves bogged down by this information, and there’s a reason for that: Hick’s Law.

This concept solidifies the idea of “analysis paralysis” and is the focus of today’s conversation between Erik and Josiah. They define Hick’s Law, how it impacts your performance, and what you can do to counteract it.

EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS:

• (1:09) What is Hick’s Law and why does it matter for performance?
• (4:03) “You don’t go to Target to buy something; you go to Target so they can tell you what to buy.” Josiah Igono
• (4:56) Why you can’t go through the mental checklist of your biomechanics when you need to perform in the moment as an athlete.
• (5:49) Implicit vs Explicit Memory
• (7:42) What is your priority?
• (8:48) Eugene Fama’s 3 factors that the highest outperforming companies share

When people hear the term “positive psychology” it can often bring to mind the idea of “always staying positive” or trying to force yourself to never feel anger or pain, but Smaranda Lawrie says that’s B.S.

Smaranda has a PhD in psychology and brain science from UCSB, is the founder of UCSB’s Resilience Summit, currently is an assistant professor at Providence College, and is a key researcher on positive psychology.

As a child, Smaranda’s family were political refugees from Romania who – in fleeing the country – ended up in Hungary hiding in apartments and even an underground tunnel to a refugee camp in Austria. She shares some of the hardships she experienced as a kid, how she learned resilience to get through them, and how research shows the importance of building resilience through parenting.

In this episode, Brandon and Erik talk with Smaranda about positive psychology actually is, leading research on how practicing it can improve your performance and overall outlook on life, what’s in the toolkit of positive psychology, and how to practice it with your kids.

EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS

• (2:15) How Smaranda’s experiences as a Romanian immigrant taught her resilience and influenced her decision to research positive psychology
• (4:15) I think sometimes people think that it’s all about happiness and having this Pollyanna smile on your face all the time. And it’s really not.” -Smaranda Lawrie
• (6:03) Positive psychology isn’t about ignoring pain and anger
• (7:49) Who is positive psychology for?
• (10:00) Smaranda’s experiences as a wife of a professional football player
• (15:29) How to parent through times of uncertainty and change
• (18:47) “We've become, in the past couple of decades, just increasingly more protective of our children. I know it's very well intentioned, but on one hand, we're telling them that they can do anything in the world and that they're their own person and they can reach for the stars and whatever. On the other hand, we're handholding them along the way.” – Smaranda Lawrie
• (23:39) How to use the tools and skillsets of positive psychology in parenting to help teach kids to regulate emotions and decisions
• (27:51) The simple gratitude exercise everyone from 2-year-olds to Fortune 500 CEOs should practice
• (31:02) How does identity fit into the conversation?
• (34:40) Why don’t we spend more time thinking about our values?
• (37:21) The importance of relationships
• (38:58) The PERMA theory
• (44:02) What advice do you have for parents with older kids – is it “too late”?
• (52:09) The research on aging well

As athletes, we’ve all heard some variation of “You’ve just got to have confidence,” as if it’s just a switch you haven’t flipped on yet.

But how? You can’t just create confidence out of thin air.

And what does it look like? Is it simply just going out on the field with the belief that you’ll win? Is it carrying yourself with certain body language? Is it surrounding yourself with people who will tell you you’re great? 

To build confidence, you have to first understand exactly what it is. Only then can you focus on building on your own confidence in all areas of your life.

In this episode of Athlete CEO: Peak Performance, Josiah Igono and Erik Averill define confidence, why it’s important, and tangible ways to boost your own confidence level.

EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS

• (1:24) Defined: What exactly is confidence?
• (3:33) Feed the B.E.A.S.T. to build your confidence
• (5:08) “You don’t have to be the thermometer; be the thermostat.” – Josiah Igono
• (5:25) “Your environment matters, because we don’t live in a neutral world.” – Erik Averill
• (6:07) David Rock’s SCARF model of leadership
• (10:44) More Athlete CEO: Peak Performances on B.E.A.S.T.

B | Championship Body Language

E | The #1 Skill to Peak Performance

A | Find, Attach and Attack Your Way to Clarity, Countering Negativity with Thought-Stopping

S | The 3 Keys to Mental Performance, The Science of Self-Talk

T | Do You Spend More Time in Reflection or Strategy?, Capturing What’s Most Important

We believe the best investment you can make is in yourself - your human capital. 

Our guest, Fabrice Gautier, has created outsized returns for some of the world’s best athletes like Rudy Gobert, Giancarlo Stanton, Kevin Love, Carmelo Anthony, Tony Parker, and more, and he has served as the French National Basketball team’s osteopath since 2009.

Described by Kevin Love as “the swiss army knife when it comes to optimizing your health and performance,” Fabrice is a licensed physical therapist and osteopath who has been particularly noteworthy for his approach of viewing an injury not just as an injury, but looking at the comprehensive solution to resolve the root issue causing that injury, which requires assessing the full person – body, mind, soul. Ultimately, the goal is to address the problem, not the consequence.

Fabrice joins Erik and Brandon and covers a range of helpful topics from his experience discussing everything from how he’s seen some of the best athletes build out the teams that surround them, to finding the root of chronic injuries, and why he thinks a strength and conditioning coach and a chef are the two most important people to have on your team.

EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS

• (1:47) Seeing the person; not a patient
• (6:07) The European vs American approaches to physical therapy
• (10:11) When should someone show up in Fabrice’s office?
• (14:28) How should an athlete handle building out the team that surrounds them?
• (20:29) The importance of having a plan
• (23:24) How should a new athlete just starting out approach building a core team that can help keep him or her healthy throughout their career?
• (28:54) The importance of investing in yourself
• (30:49) Why you need a chef – and maybe even a masseuse
• (33:31) Is lifestyle assessment becoming more normal in the performance space?
• (39:20) At the end of the day, it takes hard work
• (42:35) Learning from other sports

Perfectionism plagues so many high achievers. Perfectionism is not accepting anything short of perfection. 

Is perfectionism good, or is it bad? 

Research by Dr. Joachim Stoeber has shown that individuals who strive for perfection on the athletic field outperform and outclass their peers…until they don't.

The problem therein lies in what happens when you don't reach perfection. It leads to the fear of failure, fear of criticism, stress, depression, and anxiety.

How do you reap the benefits and avoid the pitfalls?

Peak Performance coach Josiah Igono teaches you to leverage an ancient military strategy to overcome perfectionism and reach your full potential.

• Celebrate
• All Out
• Make Minor Improvements
• Process
• Separate 

EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS

• (1:25) Paralyzing perfection
• (1:49) Defining perfectionism
• (3:01) Is chasing perfection good or bad for performance?
• (4:44) C.A.M.P.S.
• (7:54) Incorporating reflection with C.A.M.P.S.

Name, Image, Likeness (NIL) is the first step for collegiate athletes to begin getting fairly compensated for their abilities and dedication to their sport. The last two months, we’ve seen headlines of athletes signing deals with national brands, local businesses, and creating their own personal trademarks.

As a collegiate athlete, what are the most important questions and factors you should be considering before stepping into the world of NIL?

Doug Fillis, founder of Accelerate Sports Ventures, an NIL education and consulting firm, joins us to answer important questions the athletes need to know. With Doug’s extensive background in sports marketing and commitment to advising on NIL, we find out the answers to what matters most to you as a student athlete.

EPISODE HIGHLIGHT

• Staying eligible
• Will marketing money ruin your financial aid?
• How to find a good marketing agent
• How to evaluate an agent’s track record and skill
• Can a deal be for an entire sports team - i.e. the whole football team?
• Cash flow, taxes and what’s important
• Use of the school’s logos/brand
• Is the team that’s advising you competent? 

You are your own brand.

Countless times we have all heard this. And now that amateur athletes are able to monetize their Name, Image, & Likeness (NIL) the message is being shouted from the roof top.

Yet, the majority of advice is incomplete and misses the main point. The "brand" is only as valuable as the "business" that is built. Companies and people partner with brands (individual or corporate) because they believe those brands will help them become more valuable.

What is your business and what value do you offer?

On today's show, we have the privilege to hear from Evan Parker, Vice President and General Manager of The Athletic. Evan has led the Athletic to become the most valuable brand in sports journalism.

Lessons From Evan In This Episode:

• What goes into building a brand
• What makes you value to a company
• How to choose who to partner with
• How athletes can create passive income
• Who are the experts you need to build a business.

Whether you are an athlete, entrepreneur or individual looking to increase your value (human capital) this episode is for you.

You’re in a performance competition, on the field or court in the middle of a game, or about to give a big presentation and your brain starts running wild with self-defeating thoughts. 

What do you do?

For some, it can be hard to overcome these negative thoughts and their performance suffers. However, in today’s Athlete CEO: Peak Performance episode, Erik and Josiah discuss another way to combat these thoughts through the concept of thought-stopping.

They discuss what thought-stopping is, why this topic is considered controversial by some experts, and ways to practice it to see if it’s helpful for you.

EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS

• (1:01) This month’s topic: Thought Stopping
• (1:29) What is thought stopping and why is it controversial?
• (3:27) Telling yourself not to think about pink elephants?
• (5:16) There is no one size fits all
• (6:31) How does positive psychology fit into this?
• (7:41) Advice for athletes applying thought-stopping
• (10:35) What you say to yourself is the loudest voice

We have all been there. In high impact situations and high stress situations we forget to breathe.

At the exact moment we need to be at our best, we cut off our brain’s lifeline to function. Shutting down our frontal lobe, which is responsible for high level thought, decision-making, executive functioning, being able to think backwards, think strategically, and being able to innovate. 

“Be in control of your breathing, be in control of your performance.” Dr. Ken Ravizza

The benefits are unmatched when you can really control your breathing:

• Decreases stress
• Decreases anxiety
• Decreases muscle tension
• Improves performance

Listen in as Peak Performance Coach, Josiah Igono, PHD provides practical tools and resources to unlock the full power of breathing.

Resources:

• Wim Hof
• Tactical Field Guide by Josiah Igono
• Ken Ravizza, Ph.D.
• Whoop
• Oura
• The Breathing Cure by Patrick McKeown
• The Body Keeps The Score
• Andy Clower

Recommended Podcasts:

• Unlocking Human Performance With Phil Wallin
• Avoiding Burnout and Finding Wholeness with Andy Maurer

Be present. Stay in the moment. One pitch/swing/snap at a time. The past is behind you.

Simple concepts. Extremely difficult to execute. Yet, the ones that do separate themselves from the crowd. 

The tool the high performers use to execute: Release Techniques. 

When things starts to bubble up a release technique helps you to reset.

Listen in as Peak Performance Coach, Josiah Igono, PHD breaks down everything you need to know about developing your own release techniques and unlocking your full potential.