The Executive Athlete Podcast

Reinvention, Sobriety, and Becoming the Hero of Your Own Story | Cobra Kai's Sean Kanan

In this episode of the Executive Athlete, I sit down with Sean Kanan, Emmy Award winning producer, actor, bestselling author, martial artist, and TEDx speaker best known for portraying Mike Barnes in The Karate Kid Part 3 and Cobra Kai. We talk about his reinvention at 50 after battling a drinking problem and hitting rock bottom, why the greatest changes in life come from being put in a crucible, the difference between ego and confidence, and how his COBRA philosophy, Character, Optimization, Balance, Respect, and Abundance, applies to leadership and performance. ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

NFL Veteran Reveals: What Executives Can Learn From NFL Players | Bronson Kaufusi

In this episode of Executive Athlete, I sit down with Bronson Kaufus to discuss his journey from NFL defensive lineman to entrepreneur and founder of Young Athlete Society. He reveals what separates elite performers at the highest level, why mindset became his competitive edge after his father benched him sophomore year, and how an injury that doctors said would end his career became the catalyst for building something bigger than football. We explore the mental frameworks that allow athletes to perform under extreme pressure, why recovery is a ritual championship teams never skip, and the critical lesson every athlete needs to learn before their career ends. ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

Former D1 Athlete Exposes The Recovery Mistake Executives Make | Olga Gvozdenovic

Note: In the episode intro, Olga is referenced as Vice President of Sales for High Growth at SAP. Since recording, she has moved into a new role and is now Group Vice President of Renewals, Digital & SMB Strategy at Cornerstone OnDemand. In this episode of Executive Athlete, I sit down with Olga Gvozdenovic, Group Vice President of Renewals, Digital & SMB Strategy at Cornerstone OnDemand and founder of OMG Basketball Academy, to explore how her championship-level discipline on the court directly fuels her executive leadership in the corporate world. We dive into the moment her ACL tear at the McDonald’s All-American game became her greatest teacher, why instant gratification in sports created challenges when corporate timelines demanded patience, and how she builds culture around celebrating small wins. ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

Peak Performance Expert: The Harder You Push, the Worse You Perform | Jeff Benton

In this episode of Executive Athlete, I sit down with Jeff Benton, founder and CEO of Paragon Performance Evolution, to explore why coherence, not hustle, not strategy, not even willpower, is the ultimate competitive advantage. We dive into why 90% of our 60,000-70,000 daily thoughts are the same as yesterday (and 70-80% are negative), how heart-focused breathing resets your nervous system in 30 seconds, and why gratitude produces 14 biochemical changes in your body, including doubling DHEA levels.  ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

BOARD CERTIFIED PLASTIC SURGEON: Why Appearance Shapes Your Career Success | Dr. Goretti Ho Taghva

In this episode of Executive Athlete, I sit down with Dr. Goretti Ho Taghva, board-certified plastic surgeon and founder of Aesthetic Lab in Newport Beach, to explore how aesthetic medicine has evolved from vanity-driven procedures to a strategic pillar of executive performance and longevity. We dive into why first impressions matter more than we think (milliseconds, not minutes), how metabolic health determines surgical outcomes, and why the future of plastic surgery is moving from structural "carpentry" to regenerative medicine that optimizes how we age from the inside out. ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.