Key takeaways
- A high performance mindset is the ability to keep your attention on what’s in front of you, especially when the pressure rises.
- It’s trained the same way athletes train their bodies: in reps, every day.
- The best performers control three things: their thoughts, their feelings and their actions.
- Leaders build it on their teams by modeling it first.
Last updated November 2026.
I spent 15 years around elite basketball. I coached Joel Embiid and was assistant director at Steph Curry’s first skills academy. The thing that separated the best players wasn’t talent. It was a high performance mindset: the ability to stay locked in on the next play while everything around them got loud.
Leaders need the same thing now. Your day is full of pings, meetings and pressure that pull your attention to the last thing that went wrong or the next thing that might. Here’s what a high performance mindset is, and how to build one.
What is a high performance mindset?
A high performance mindset is the ability to put your full attention on what’s in front of you, especially when the pressure is on. Motivation comes and goes. This is a skill you train, the same way an athlete trains their body.
In my work I call it HeartMind. Unlocking the power of presence requires us to activate the heart of a mindful leader and build the mindset of an elite athlete. We need empathy, compassion and connection by leading with the heart. At the same time, we need the focus, discipline and resilience of an elite athlete. And ultimately, the awareness of which to use, with intention, moment to moment.
Why distraction is the real performance problem
Harvard researchers Matthew Killingsworth and Daniel Gilbert found that people’s minds wander 46.9% of the time, whatever they’re doing. That means about half of your workday, you aren’t really there.
When I speak, I ask the room a few questions. Where does anxiety live? Worry? Regret? Guilt? The answer is always the past or the future. Then I ask: where does connection live? Flow? Your best performance? Only in the present. Every state you want to lead from is in the present moment.
What I learned watching Steve Nash warm up
I had a chance to watch Nash go through a short pre-game workout before playing the Milwaukee Bucks. He started shooting drills close to the hoop, just five feet out, moving deliberately, far slower than game speed. Every shot focused on a perfect release—feeling every movement, making micro-adjustments until his form was flawless. Even as he moved outward, working through a series of step-backs and pull-ups, the precision never wavered. His feet landed exactly the same way on every shot, his follow-through consistent and unwavering. He refused to move on to the next drill until he had made five consecutive shots from each spot.
That’s a high performance mindset. Nash wasn’t chasing volume. He was fully present for every rep. Leaders can work the same way: one conversation, one decision, one meeting at a time.
High performance mindset vs. growth mindset
Psychologist Carol Dweck’s research on growth mindset shows that people who believe their abilities can grow handle setbacks better. That belief is the foundation.
A high performance mindset is what you do with your ability in the moment. A growth mindset says “I can get better.” A high performance mindset says “I’m all here for this rep.” You need both.
How to develop a high performance mindset: 5 habits
1. Control the three things you can control
Your thoughts, your feelings and your actions. Most leaders spend their energy on the market, the economy and other people. Put it where you have power.
2. Use the Decision Gap
The Decision Gap is the space between what happens and how you respond. The more stress you’re under, the more that gap shrinks. When something hits, (1) notice the trigger, (2) detach emotionally, and (3) get objective. Instead of becoming the storm, you become the observer of it. For a quick way to do this in the moment, use the three-step reset for presence under pressure.
3. Play one for one
Great shooters don’t think about the last miss or the next shot. They give everything to this one. When you make a mistake, go to the next play, a phrase Duke’s Coach K made famous.
4. See a setback for what it is
A deal fell through. Nothing more. Nothing less. It doesn’t mean you’re failing as a leader. The power is never in the event. It’s in the story you attach to it.
5. Train your recovery
You can’t stay sharp on an empty tank. Meditation, exercise, diet and sleep are the four inputs I learned from my former player Paul Jesperson. More in Get Your MEDS.
How leaders build a high performance mindset on their team
You get what you model. If you want your team calm under pressure, they have to see you calm under pressure first.
Then catch people doing it right, and be specific. When I worked Forrest Larson’s basketball camps, he didn’t say “nice move.” He’d say, “Great job initiating contact, putting your inside shoulder on the defender, and taking him out of the play.” I knew exactly what to do again. Your team will too.
This is what my Peak Performance in an Age of Distraction keynote is built on.
Frequently asked questions
What is a high performance mindset?
It’s the ability to keep your full attention on what’s in front of you, especially under pressure. It’s built through daily practice, not motivation.
How do you develop a high performance mindset?
Control your thoughts, feelings and actions. Create space between what happens and how you respond. Focus on one rep at a time, see setbacks plainly and protect your recovery.
What’s the difference between a growth mindset and a high performance mindset?
A growth mindset is the belief that you can improve. A high performance mindset is your ability to use what you have, fully present, in the moment that counts.
What do elite athletes do differently?
They train their minds as deliberately as their bodies. They stay relaxed but alert, focus on the process instead of the scoreboard and move on to the next play quickly.
Bring the high performance mindset to your team
My peak performance keynote teaches leaders and teams how to focus, reset and perform when it matters, drawing on years with basketball’s elite.
