Stan Beecham - Elite Minds: How Winners Think Differently to Create a Competitive Edge and Maximize Success

I hired Doctor Stan Beecham as team sport psychologist while he was a young doctoral student at the University of Georgia, and he was a tremendous help with our football team, especially working with the kickers through our kicking coach. One of the beneficiaries of that decision was our field goal kicker, All-American Kevin Butler, who today is the only such kicker to be inducted in the College Football Hall of Fame. I was proud to have read Stans book Elite Minds and highly recommend it for athletes, sports enthusiasts, and the general public.

Vince Dooley, College Football Hall of Fame inductee, UGA football coach, UGA athletics director

In a virtual sea of business improvement books, Elite Minds will stand out as one of the greats. Dr. Stans message that expectation dictates performance is critical. All leaders want to win, yet few expect to win. At Vonage, weve internalized this view, and Elite Minds is required reading for our managers and leaders. I wholeheartedly recommend Elite Minds to anyone who wants to create a winning mindset within their organization.

Alan Masarek, CEO, Vonage

I cant put this new book down! Ive long been a fan of sport psychologist Dr. Stan Beecham. In fact, I hired him as the psychologist for my elite running team a few years ago. Now he has published his long-awaited book on peak performance called Elite Minds Im really glad he wrote this book. It truly is a great read and Im very excited to offer it to the McMillan community. Buy it. Read it. Get ready for the performances of your dreams.

Greg McMillan, founder, McMillan Running

I enjoyed Elite Minds and purchased copies for family and coworkers. Stan presents invaluable information and ideas for success in your personal life and the highly competitive business environment.

Mike Cote, CEO, SecureWorks

I find Elite Minds by Dr. Beecham to be a great resource for me and my athletes. We use it as a training manual for the mental aspects of the game and it has paid great dividends. I highly recommend it whether you are a coach or a team looking for better skills.

Manny Diaz, University of Georgia mens tennis coach and six-time NCAA Team Championship winner

Dr. Stan has worked with our leaders for many years, challenging us not only in our pursuits to be a high-performing team but also to understand ourselves and what might be keeping us from realizing our professional and personal ambitions. This includes setting ambitious goals and accepting failure versus staying in our comfort zones. Elite Minds captures in a very effective manner the tough questions and directness that is classic Dr. Stan.

Jim Burke, CEO, TXU Energy

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This book is dedicated to all who wish to fly.

Do not read this book if you are looking for a quick fix, motivation, or just want to feel better. There is no such thing. Happy is for children. Being happy is not the purpose of your life. Being fully alive and awake is the purpose of your life. That includes the pain and struggle that is a critical and necessary component to human existence.

There are no 7 Habits, 15 Characteristics, or 21 Laws. There are no Secrets or Promises. If you desire a book that shows you the precise steps to a successful outcome, may I recommend a good cookbookJulia Childs, to be specific. However, I can promise you that your casserole will not turn out like hers, even if you do exactly what she suggests, in the exact order she recommends. Life is the same way. We think that by following someone elses recipe we will reach our destination. No, you will reach their destination, which will, in turn, mean you are still lost.

If you havent bought the book yet, put it down and go back to the magazines; they will make you happy and distract you from waking the hell up and getting on with it (especially the ones with lots of pictures). That will make your friends, family, competitors, and enemies very happy.

If you are still reading, goodthere is hope for you. However, reading this book will likely make you feel worse, not better. But hey, you were not born to be content, you were born to be complete (thats what the word perfect means), to be the greatest you possibleand the fact of the matter is, very few make it. That journey involves giving up the hope that someone else is going to give you the answer or set a plan for you that will fulfill your life-long dreams. Anyone who has the audacity to suggest that others follow their path because in the eyes of the world they have been deemed successful is simply practicing narcissism. What I have attempted to do with this book is share with you my observations of people who have successfully navigated from Point A to Point B in as straight a line as possible for a human to maneuver. They have performed at the highest of levels possiblenot because they followed someone elses advice, but because they had the courage to take their own.