Dr. Andy Walshe has possibly the coolest job in the world. He helps Red Bull's extreme athletes skydive from 25 miles up in space, surf 90 foot waves and concentrate for hours of racing at 200 mph. And he's come to some eye opening conclusions, among them self-compassion is crucial to elite performance and that business executives need frighteningly similar instruction as elite athletes.

He gains that unique 5-mile high perspective by working with hundreds of international athletes, supervising a team of industry-leading sports scientists, nutritionists, biomechanics experts and sports psychologists; and from all of this he develops models for elite sports performance.

As performance manager for Red Bull Stratos, Andy and his team help Felix Baumgartner execute a performance plan by encompassing both physical and psychological readiness, and provide high performance direction and support for the entire mission team.

Andy's professional interests are focused on delivering pragmatic solutions to explore all kinds of human potential; he is a consultant for business, sports and military organizations worldwide. With a Ph.D. in Applied Biomechanics (the science of movement) and applied coaching expertise in performance training, the Australian native designed a highly successful performance program for the U.S. Olympic ski and snowboard teams, guiding their athletes to victories on the world stage.

E161: Brand Strategy + Net Zero Challenges with James Poletti