Nathan and I started to work together when his business was stuck at 10k a month. He needed it to get to 40k in order to retire his partner and he was tired of being stuck.
He had tried to launch different programs, do more of this and more of that, but he couldn’t get past the 10k ceiling.
So we took a different approach.. and the funny thing is that after he simply removed two things, his business finally took off.
Within two months he was at 40k MRR and within five months he was at 80k MRR with very very high profit margins.
Not only was he able to retire his wife, but he was also infinitely happier. He earned a sense of accomplishment and pride that had eluded him.
So what happened?
The Hierarchy of Elite Performance
From coaching 100+ 7-9 figure entrepreneurs I’ve noticed a clear pattern as to why people get stuck at different levels of success.
With Nathan the first thing we had to do was figure out what level of the Hierarchy of Elite Performance he was stuck at.
Luckily he was stuck at a pretty high rung and there were two massive yet solvable issues that once we resolved enabled him to really go.
Let me explain…
The Levels
From a high level overview there are 4 main components to achieving elite performance. Each one acts as a constraint that will dictate the level of success an entrepreneur will be stuck at.
Level 1: Skillset
Concept: No success can be had if there isn’t a skill set in place. You can have the best mindset in the world and be the most disciplined person ever, but that won’t do you any good if you don’t have a tangible skillset to employ it with.
Example: An athlete with a great skill set in their sport. I.e. being able to kick or throw a ball was great precision.
Nathan’s case: Nathan had a phenomenal skillset and was very respected in his industry. Skillset wasn’t his constraint.
Level 2: Character
Concept: Without having character traits like discipline, resilience, resourcefulness or desire people won’t max out their skillset.
Example: The gifted athlete who has a phenomenal natural skill set but doesn’t put in the work, never reaches his full potential and fails to make it to the pros.
Nathan’s Case: Nathan was disciplined, honest and ambitious. This wasn’t the constraint either. We needed to keep climbing.
Level 3: Mindset
Concept: Mindset comes down to your ability to frame situations in a way that will serve your progress. Even if you have a great skill set and work hard to bring it out, you will still meet obstacles. Having the right mindset is the difference between seeing these obstacles as frustrating burdens or amazing opportunities to help you grow and separate yourself from the competition.
Example: The athlete suffers an injury. He can either get discouraged, mope and go on a downward spiral or he can see it as an opportunity to work on flaws and study more film as he’s recovering.
Nathan’s Case: Nathan was pretty good at this. He wasn’t world class, but he had faced setbacks and didn’t let them define him. So we moved onto the last and final rung of the pyramid.
Level 4: Emotional Fortitude – Mental and Emotional Blocks
Concept: Even if you have a strong skill set… and the character traits to make the most of it… and you have the mindset to frame the inevitable challenges in the right way.. if your emotions hijack you and stop you from taking the big actions and really going for greatness, you’ll hold yourself back and never reach your potential. You’ll underachieve what someone with your skillset should be capable of.
Example: The athlete has amazing natural talent, works on his skills and overcome any and all setbacks on his way, but under the big lights of the final moments of championship match he’s scared to take the last shot because he’s terrified of failure.
Nathan’s Case: Growing up in a very religious background led Nathan to have emotional issues around money. When we deconstructed it, he had two primary emotional blocks that were holding him back.
They were the two big constraints that we needed resolve.
1. “It’s greedy to want more than what I currently have and if I make more money than that means I’m a bad person”.
2. “I’m not good enough and am not deserving of that much money.”
Now you can see how if somebody has an amazing skill set, a business that has a ton of traffic to it, is super disciplined, knows how to frame things correctly, but has that nonsense rattling in the back of their head, they’ll end up self sabotaging their success.
Flushing out and then systematically deconstructing and challenging those emotional blocks made all the difference for Nathan. The moment we resolved those emotional blocks and released him from them he took off.
The amazing thing is that he took off so fast that it overtook his wife’s retirement plans.
She needed more time to unwind her final work project and digest and accept the new reality that Nathan created for them.
What You Can Do To Take Action Now
- Honestly assess where you are in the Hierarchy (skillset, Character, Mindset, Emotional Clarity).
- Write it down somewhere for you to see.
- Choose courage and take action.
If you more skills or discipline isn’t your constraint, but accessing the full extent of them is, then you’re going to have to be brave. Conquering the last two rungs of the Hierarchy requires some no BS honest work, but the good news is that it’s immensely impactful and it doesn’t wear off like some random motivational tactics. Once you conquer those rungs the effects will last forever. Choose courage.
An Asset To Help You (Podcast)
The Elite Foundations Podcast Episode 12 – In this episode we dive into the Hierarchy of Elite Performance and walk you through the tangible steps you can take to conquer the top two rungs, Mindset and Emotional Clarity.
Listen to it here: The Elite Foundations Podcast
Who dares wins,
Itamar
