Performance Improvement: Supporting High-Achieving Professionals

Wednesday, May 13, 2026 | 12:00 PM EST - 12:45 PM EST

At a certain level of achievement, the bottleneck to performance is no longer strategic - it's internal. The entrenched patterns of overthinking, emotional rigidity, and chronic stress that keep your clients stuck aren't resolved through optimization alone. For the professionals and founders you work with, the question is rarely whether they're capable. It's whether they can access the deeper clarity, openness, and creative flexibility that separates sustained high performance from eventual burnout.

The science is catching up with what many high-achievers are quietly exploring. A Johns Hopkins University study found that a single guided experience involving expanded states of consciousness led to lasting increases in openness - a personality trait associated with creativity, cognitive flexibility, and imagination - with effects persisting more than a year. A 2025 randomized controlled trial in PLOS Medicine found that healthcare professionals experiencing burnout who had an experience involving expanded states of consciousness alongside mindfulness training achieved full remission at nearly six times the rate of the control group.

This webinar is designed for executive coaches who support high-achieving professionals. We'll explore emerging research on expanded states of consciousness and performance - not as a productivity hack, but as an experience that may help your clients break through internal barriers to their next level of leadership and purpose.

What We’ll Explore

  • The neuroscience of “stuckness”: Why high-functioning professionals plateau, and how expanded states of consciousness may support cognitive flexibility, openness, and creative problem-solving

  • From burnout to breakthrough: Key findings from clinical research on stress recovery and sustained wellbeing in demanding professional environments

  • What your clients are already exploring: How to navigate conversations about expanded states of consciousness with high-achieving clients who may be curious but hesitant

  • Safety, preparation, and integration: The clinical and ethical guardrails that distinguish transformative experiences from risky ones

  • The coach’s role before and after: How to support clients through preparation, the experience, and long-term integration

Meet the Speakers

FF Team Member Photos (9)

Neil Markey

Beckley Retreats CEO & Co-Founder

Beckley Retreats Was Featured In

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Beckley Team Member Affiliations

Harvard University
Columbia University
Stanford University
The Citadel
McKinsey & Company