Geraint Thomas crashed out of the 2019 Tour de France. Not from exhaustion. From three seconds of lost focus on a routine descent. Months of training, gone.
Marathon runners don’t quit at mile 26. They quit at mile 18 when their mind whispers “impossible.”
Sports psychologist Jim Loehr found that 85% of athletic performance is mental. The body follows what the brain believes.
You’ve experienced this. The client presentation where confidence abandoned you mid-sentence. The board meeting where you fumbled a simple question. Perfect preparation, flawless execution for months, then one moment of mental static.
Your strategy was sound. Your team was ready. But your internal narrative shifted from “I can” to “I can’t.”
Elite athletes don’t avoid breaking points. They prepare for them. They practice mental resets during training. They rehearse comeback scenarios.
Your leadership needs the same conditioning. The strongest don’t break less often. They break better and rebuild faster.
