As we start to wrap up our series of hot topics compilations, we are going over the essential pillar of what Toughness is all about: personal POWER - aka committed action - which is a combination of mental strength and psychological speed that makes people unstoppable in uncertainty. From a basketball legend to a business maverick, from an Olympic champion to multiple bestselling authors, you'll hear how these inspiring examples only managed to unlock their full potential when they decided to commit and stick to their vision, no matter how many road blocks stood in their way - and each one of them has advice for others who need to move past their feelings and stick to their plans.   FEATURED IN THIS SPECIAL EPISODE: Jordan Belfort (Investor) - Bravery in Business Justin Kenna (CEO) - Bravery in Business Shaquille O'Neal (NBA) - Belief Is A Big Deal Dalilah Muhammad (Olympic Champion) - Running Towards the Hurdles Dan Coyle (Author) - Tough Cultures vs Tough Leaders Mike Erwin (West Point) - Tough Cultures vs Tough Leaders Freddie Stevenson (Football / Author) - Finding A Way Jon Gordon (Author/Speaker) - Public Speaking with Positivity and Purpose

What if you had a on/off switch that could instantly shutdown the negative emotions in your brain and just get you focused on the task at hand? That's exactly what today's episode is all about: developing Cognitive Speed. From baseball to the boardroom, e-sports to the olympics, from the police to the podium, all of these stories involve individuals who faced immense pressure and stress, but pivoted quickly to ensure success. Whether you're scared by an important decision that you have to make, or you have experienced deep traumas, or constantly battling "negative" emotions like anger, this selection of guests are going to show you how they manage to quickly accept the noise and flick their focus onto the now, as a result of that, get the most out of the moments that matter. FEATURED IN THIS SPECIAL EPISODE: Keeping Calm When Life Throws You Curveballs - Kevin Pillar (MLB) Executive Function Under Fire - Mike Tannenbaum (GM) Executive Function Under Fire - Scott Goldman (PhD)  Police, Pressure & PTSD - Lane Douglas Hunt (Police) + Brian Willis (Training) Police, Pressure & PTSD - Brian Willis (Training) The Practice of Finding Power in Pain - Apolo Ohno (Olympic Champion) Gaming Your Mind - Emmalee ”EMUHLEET” Garrido (Esports) The Brain Is A Body Part - Alexi Pappas (Olympian + Filmmaker)

How do people deal with prolonged discomfort? How can you hang on when the going gets tough? How can you avoid cutting corners or getting lazy when the payoff seems forever away? At the halfway point of our series of specially curated episodes, a topic comes to mind that covers all of this - Emotional Endurance.  In this episode we hear how people that stand out in very different arenas manage to keep their emotions in check in high stakes situations. From gambling millions of dollars in World Series Poker, to driving and crashing a 200mph Nascar racing car, or living for 10+ in war zones, some guests had to learn not only how to deal with the pressure of being a World Champion, but also how to find balance within their teams. This is an episode that will definitely help you to put the weight, pressure and bullshit aside and hang in there through hard times. FEATURED IN THIS SPECIAL EPISODE:  Margaret Coker (Journalist) - The Waiting Game Of War Jesse Iwuji (NASCAR Racing) - The Drive to Thrive Jorryt Van Hoof (Poker Player) - High Stakes? Poker Face 😐 Jared Tendler (Performance Coach) - High Stakes? Poker Face 😐 Denise Shull (Finance) - Trading, Triggers, And How Feelings (Like Fear) Help Us Win John Burns (Wall Street) - Trading, Triggers, And How Feelings (Like Fear) Help Us Win Michael Hixon (Olympic Diver) - Staying in Sync Under Stress Sam Dorman (Olympic Diver) - Staying in Sync Under Stress Cody Royle (Performance Coach) - The Tough Part of Being the Top Dog

Here in the third episode of our series of hot topic compilations, you'll hear how some of the best in the world in a huge variety of fields - from Comedy to Coaching, in the NFL and the WNBA, from fashion shows to finance boardrooms - manage to stick to their vision and stay on course to their North Star, even when the waves get choppy and the vision might be blurry. Hear from people at the top of their game as they explore what can be termed "Spiritual Stability", but not in a religious sense: it's about what your heart & your spirit value most in life. Why do elite performers keep pushing forward when there’s so many obstacles, and plenty of excuses to quit or change? Tune in to find out! FEATURED IN THIS SPECIAL EPISODE: Ronny Chieng (Comedian / Actor) - How To Stay Strong, Even If You Bomb Kliff Kingsbury (NFL Head Coach) - Growth, Greatness & Attacking The Game Of Life Chasity Melvin (WNBA) - The Value of Vision Broderick Hunter (Model / Actor) - A Model Of Confidence, From Fashion To Film Joe Moglia (Business / Coaching) - The Courage of Leading With Love Jen Welter (NFL) - Tough Women Make History Justine Siegal (MLB) - Tough Women Make History

Ahead of the upcoming second season of Toughness, behold the second in our series of hot topic special episodes! In today's specially curated compilation, you'll hear how bad-ass performers in cut-throat environments - from Navy Seals to NASA, from Firefighters to First Basemen, even Cirque du Soleil acrobats and Olympic sprinters - flex their mental muscles in unique ways in order to withstand the fire. Listen to tales from the front lines as those who face the flames on a daily basis talk through how they adapt, adjust and overcome unexpected obstacles and unforeseen setbacks. Some of our guests also speak to coaches and the psychology behind training that flexible, "bend, don't break" mindset which is so crucial on stages when its make or break, where lives are saved or lost - including vital tips that could help you adapt while facing your own adversity. FEATURED IN THIS SPECIAL EPISODE: Coleman Ruiz (Navy SEAL) - Special Forces, Mental Agility & Elite Habits *Part 1*Ceci Craft (MLB) - Special Forces, Mental Agility & Elite Habits *Part 2*Holly Ridings (NASA) - Mission Critical MindsetJason Brezler (FDNY) - Focus Through The Fire *Part 1*Steven Hayes (Psychology) - Flexibility Comes First: From Panic Disorders To Player DevelopmentJonathan Fader (NFL / MLB) - Focus Through The Fire *Part 2*Veronica Campbell-Brown (Olympics) - The Stress Of Repeating SuccessVeronique Richard (Cirque du Soleil) - Cultivating Courage In Acrobats, Clowns & CoachesDarren Holder (Coaching) - Cultivating Courage In Acrobats, Clowns & Coaches

To warm up for season 2 of the show, we're releasing a series of specially curated compilations on the pillars of Toughness. In today's episode, you're going to hear how elite performers in different arenas - from NFL and NBA to WWE and MLB, from the Olympics to academics, and from medicine to the military - maximize their talents in the moments that matter most. One by one you'll be able to hear how some of the world's best in their fields stay glued to their goals and focused in the fight, despite distress and distractions. These brave experts will share stories and tips on how they tap into and even develop their own Mental Strength in the toughest of conditions, and provide inspiration for anyone who is facing a tough time at work, at home or anywhere else in life.   FEATURED IN THIS SPECIAL EPISODE: Raheem Mostert (NFL) - How an NFL Record Holder Tackles Tough TimesShaquille O'Neal (NBA) - Belief Is A Big DealLacey Evans (WWE) - Motivation in the Marines, MLB and WWEJustin Su'a (MLB) - Motivation in the Marines, MLB and WWELindsey Vonn (Olympics) - Grit, Gold, and the Two Types of ToughnessAngela Duckworth (Academics) - Grit, Gold, and the Two Types of ToughnessDr Al'ai Alvarez (Emergency Medicine) - Coping With Chaos in Critical CareWaldo Waldman (Fighter Pilot) - How To Fly Through Fear

The coach of head coaches: that's the perfect way to explain how Cody Royle operates behind the curtains with the leaders of elite teams around the world. After some traumatic events in his own early coaching journey, Cody realized that there was nobody focussed specifically on how tough situations could impact the performance of head coaches - so he decided to start documenting his coaching philosophy in a series of books, podcasts, and blogs, which led to him becoming the trusted confidant of coaches across multiple sports. In this episode, Royle shares with us how toughness, optimism and a great culture can drive not only professional sports forward, but careers and life in general.

Dalilah Muhammad's career is filled with titles, medals and world records, but the Track & Field legend needed elite levels of toughness to overcome a lot of hurdles on the way to winning Gold in Rio's 2016 Olympics. By saying 'yes' to her inner voice, and then also to everything that led towards what she really wanted - even if it was hard - she was able to go all-in on her dreams, overcome injuries and other setbacks and write her name in history as the first American woman to win Olympic Gold in the 400 meter hurdles.

What’s the one thing that the stock market and football have in common? The answer is Joe Moglia. The former chairman of the board and CEO of TD Ameritrade decided to leave one of the most most lucrative fields ever to pursue his dream of working as a football coach. As the head coach of Coastal Carolina, Moglia quickly realised that toughness was an essential fuel for not only athletes and businessmen, but for every person who have the guts to find out who they really are.

When 4 years of work can be undone in one moment, whats tougher than having to deal with your own stress? Having two people's stress combined. This week we dive in the mind of 2 Olympic silver medalists, Michael Hixon (2x silver in 2016 and 2020) and Sam Dorman (1x silver in 2016). The duo of divers represented Team USA in Rio in the men's synchronized 3-meter springboard event. By talking about how they deal with the pressure of having only 6 dives to focus on in an interval of 4 years of preparation, we dig into the counterintuitive truth that you can have 2 people who approach their mental game in a very different manner. You don't want to miss this one!

Anyone can choose to be a hero in a videogame, but who has the privilege to be one in the real world as well? Emmalee "EMUHLEET" Garrido is best know as the captain of 5x World Champion e-sports team Dignitas, but she's also a life & death nurse on her day-to-day-job. In this episode she shares why the mental game is crucial on both high stakes areas of her life, how she keeps cool as a leader in the game as well as in the Emergency Room, and the secret way she uses her favorite emotion - ANGER - to level up when the stakes are the highest.

If it wasn't already taken, the Olympic creed could easily be a motto for this show: “The important thing in life is not the triumph, but the fight; the essential thing is not to have won, but to have fought well.” In this special episode to celebrate Tokyo 2021, we pull together the advice of 4 Olympians - 2 summer, 2 winter, with multiple medals and records to their names - around how the Olympic motto can be used for anyone to go higher (goal setting), faster (sticking to long processes) and stronger (focus under pressure) in any walk of life.

When you could be captured, tortured or killed any moment as a part of your work, only the tough can hang in there and make a career out of it. Margaret Coker lasted two decades as a foreign correspondent across thirty-two countries on four continents, including some of the worst warzones on earth in the Middle East. In this chat she takes us behind the scenes not only of the job but also her inner coping strategies, showing us how she hung in there to shine light on issues that have led to criminal trials of global banks and investigations of corrupt police officers, as well as freedom for three people wrongly convicted and incarcerated - proving that the wait can be worth all the worry in the end.

If you had your eye dislocated from its socket during the course of your work, would you go back and do it again? Chasity Melvin is one of the few people who can answer that question definitively, literally damaging her visual system while pursuing her larger purpose in life, playing in the WNBA. While she recovered her physical injuries, the vision for her life never wavered, and here she shares how that vital source of strength has acted as both a motivator and a guide - from her 12 year career as a player in the WNBA, to her journey as an international star, and then a coach for both men's and women's pro teams that has led her back to the league, now on the coaching staff at Phoenix Mercury.

In this episode - the second of a two-part special on NASA and the critical teams that drive Mission Control and the International Space Station - we take it to another level by talking about the leadership of out of this world teams. Join Holly Ridings (Chief Flight Operator at NASA) and Preston Cline (Founder of the Mission Critical Teams Institute) as we dig into how anyone can help build their team up to this standard of vulnerability simply by asking for it, as well as other responsibilities of leader when you're asking for elite performance under extreme duress. 

As the Chief Flight Director at NASA, Holly Ridings knows a thing or two about managing big moments. Not only has she overseen rocket launches & missions to both the International Space Station and the moon, she has piloted her own career to heights no-one had done before when she became the first female ever installed in her position. She's joined here by Dr Preston Cline - an international expert on the psychology of Mission Critical Teams as diverse as the FBI, surgical teams and NASA - for a chat about the methods, mindsets and motivations of those who do things that are literally out-of-this-world.

For all that Alexi Pappas knew about her body in 2016 - enough to push it to setting records in the 10,000m event at the Olympics in Rio - she knew very little of her mind back then. What followed gave her a crash course in the critical role our brains play in any performance: suffering severe depression, she began to think of suicide, only saved by the intervention of her father. Now on the other side of her darkest days, she uses her filmmaking, writing and acting to show how mental health and wellbeing are inseparable from sustainable high performance, especially for those trying to climb their own Mt Olympus.

When leading a team at the top, where do you look to find an untapped edge? Mike Tannenbaum - a longtime NFL executive who led both the New York Jets and Miami Dolphins for more than a decade - found ways of quantifying toughness in talent that was already highly scrutinized in other ways. One of the key elements of that was the work of Scott Goldman, a performance psychologist who has worked with elite players and coaches at teams like the Golden State Warriors, and the founder of AIQ - a revolutionary way of testing athletic intelligence & executive function in high performing populations.

When you don’t know where your next meal is coming from, how can you still dream big? Freddie Stevenson has lived the answer to that question - he went from growing up in a family of 5 that couldn’t afford to eat some nights, to winning a national championship with Florida State Seminoles, which led to a brief career in the NFL, which led to becoming a published author and motivational speaker. Thanks to his experiences as a Fullback (a relatively unheralded position in football) Freddie became a specialist at finding a way through when you can’t see what’s on the other side.

What do the best in the world of commerce have in common? Jordan Belfort - better known as the Wolf of Wall St - has lived the highest highs and the lowest lows in the world of finance, and now shares what he's learned along the way about what separates the best from the rest in business. Joining him is Justin Kenna, CEO of GameSquare, a pioneering e-sports brand that's a perfect case study of the type of competitive advantage that comes from bravery, being bold, and the "ruthless pursuit of short term goals".