Published: July 29, 2025

By Paul T. Ayres

Executive Summary – Quick Read Format

Sacrifice is a foundational component of team success, as evident in high-performing groups ranging from championship sports teams to elite military units and peak-performing professional organizations. Drawing from the work of Jordan Peterson and other thought leaders like Patrick Lencioni, this article explores how sacrifice is defined, discussed, and embedded in the cultures of winning athletes, successful professionals, and military teams. Across all domains, sacrifice emerges as a consistent theme in the pursuit of excellence: surrendering comfort, ego, and sometimes personal ambition for a higher collective mission.

By comparing how sacrifice is framed in elite sports, business, and military environments, we discover both shared truths and contextual differences.

This article concludes with three actionable recommendations for professionals in non-sport, non-military contexts to harness the power of sacrifice to elevate career and team success.

1. Practice Purposeful Discomfort

• Regularly volunteer for high-stakes or stretch assignments.

• Sacrificing comfort signals commitment and builds career capital.

• Example: Taking the lead on an unpopular but essential project.

2. Elevate Others Ahead of Yourself

• Publicly recognize teammates before yourself.

• Sacrifice short-term credit to build long-term influence and loyalty.

• Example: Sharing the spotlight during a successful product launch.

3. Adopt a Mission-First Mindset

• Use organizational purpose to guide personal decisions.

• Sacrifice conflicting personal preferences when alignment demands it.

• Example: Choosing relocation or team change to support strategic goals.

Conclusion

Sacrifice is the invisible fuel that powers elite performance, whether on the field, in the boardroom, or on the battlefield. Jordan Peterson’s psychological framing and Patrick Lencioni’s organizational insights both converge on this truth: teams that work are built on individuals who are willing to give up something today for something better tomorrow.  Athletes, professionals, and military personnel all demonstrate that success is seldom achieved without surrender—of comfort, ego, or immediate gratification. While the stakes and context vary, the principle remains. For those in non-military and non-sport professional roles, the willingness to sacrifice is not about martyrdom; it’s about maturity, strategic thinking, and long-range impact. To cultivate a thriving professional life, one must embrace sacrifice not as a burden, but as the price of admission to the realm of excellence.

Entire Article

The Price of Excellence: An Exercise in How Sacrifice Fuels Elite Teams in Sports, Business, and the Military

Introduction: Jordan Peterson and the Psychology of Sacrifice

STOCK PHOTO

Have you considered the concept of sacrifice as an avenue to increase your team’s effectiveness? Just how would one go about that? This complex and extremely interesting aspect of human behavior is likely beyond the scope of this article. Yet, I think it is productive to engage the reader’s mind in such an exercise.

In the business world, we don’t often discuss sacrifice, and when it’s done often it’s often only with respect to those in leadership. Sacrifice isn’t just for leaders. It just might be the lens with which to take a look at where you are vs. where you want to go in your career or with your organization.  Let’s first take a look at some background on sacrifice.

Jordan Peterson's works (Maps of Meaning (1999) and 12 Rules for Life (2028)

Jordan Peterson, in his seminal works such as Maps of Meaning (1999) and 12 Rules for Life (2018), emphasizes sacrifice as a central pillar in the development of both individual character and collective civilization. According to Peterson, the act of sacrifice is the ability to forgo immediate pleasures or security in order to secure a future of greater value. This psychological framework is essential for high-functioning teams because it fosters discipline, order, and cohesion. He argues that sacrifice is the necessary deferral of immediate gratification to serve a future ideal—what he calls "the bargain with the future." In 12 Rules for Life, Peterson writes: “The successful delay gratification. They bargain with the future. They learn that today’s sacrifice leads to tomorrow’s gains” (Peterson, 2018, p. 193).

This insight is not limited to theoretical philosophy but is echoed in pragmatic team environments across sectors. In organizational settings, sacrifice manifests in a range of behaviors: from subordinating personal ambition to advancing team goals, to enduring strenuous efforts with no immediate payoff, to standing in solidarity with struggling colleagues. Peterson’s psychological foundation frames sacrifice not as a loss, but as an investment in future strength and success.

Patrick Lencioni, author of The Five Dysfunctions of a Team

Supporting Peterson’s perspective is Patrick Lencioni, author of The Five Dysfunctions of a Team (2002). Lencioni identifies self-sacrifice as the cornerstone of building trust, which he describes as the foundation of any high-functioning team. In his work, he writes that, “When team members are willing to put the team’s success ahead of their own ego, politics, or personal agendas, it creates a culture of accountability and results” (Lencioni, 2002, p. 85). For Lencioni, vulnerability—the willingness to admit fault, accept help, and relinquish control—is a form of sacrifice that ultimately strengthens the entire team dynamic.

These complementary perspectives from Peterson and Lencioni set the stage for our exploration of how sacrifice functions in elite sports, business, and military settings.

Sacrifice Among Championship Athletes

Clockwise from Top Left: Philadelphia Eagles (NFL), Mikaela Shiffrin (Skiing), the 1980 USA Olympic Hockey Team, and Katie Ledecky (Swimming) - iconic moments in American Sports history

Elite athletes who reach championship levels commonly describe sacrifice in deeply personal and often physical terms. Sacrifice, in this context, is the willingness to forgo personal time, social engagement, physical comfort, and sometimes even individual accolades in the pursuit of a collective team victory. Athletes recount years of early mornings, solitary training sessions, missed family events, and rigorous discipline that defines their commitment to sport.

Kobe Bryant, The Mamba Mentality

Kobe Bryant, for instance, famously embodied this mindset, often arriving at practice before dawn and staying late into the night. In The Mamba Mentality, he describes how he trained relentlessly while others rested, believing that this daily sacrifice created a competitive edge. He said: “Great things come from hard work and perseverance. No excuses” (Bryant, 2018).

Alabama Football Coach, Nick Saban

University of Alabama football coach Nick Saban, a consistent national championship contender, repeatedly emphasizes the uncomfortable truth behind greatness. “Everybody wants to be a beast until it’s time to do what beasts do,” Saban told ESPN in a 2019 interview. His teams train not merely for fitness but to build mental endurance through sacrifice—rejecting ease for preparedness. Athletes on such teams are encouraged to sacrifice short-term ease and individual stardom for systemic execution and trust.

Carli Lloyd, two-time FIFA Women's World Cup Champion

Carli Lloyd, two-time FIFA Women’s World Cup Champion, recounts in her autobiography the extensive personal sacrifices she made to remain competitive at the international level. “I trained every day for 16 years with no guarantee I’d ever start. I missed weddings, parties, and even family holidays. That’s sacrifice,” she wrote (Lloyd, 2016). For Lloyd, giving up life’s expected moments was not a hardship, but a conscious decision aligned with a higher mission.

Key Insight:

The pattern among championship athletes illustrates that sacrifice is more than a means to an end; it is a cultural ethos that permeates daily practice and long-term commitment. This ethos reinforces unity and trust, especially under pressure. Research by Fletcher and Wagstaff (2009) shows that teams with a high level of shared sacrifice display greater resilience, improved communication, and heightened performance under stress. Athletes internalize this ethos as a form of identity, not merely behavior. Sacrifice becomes a badge of belonging, a unifier that binds individuals into a synergistic team unit. Unlike talent or tactics, which may fluctuate or be replicated, sacrifice remains a constant predictor of elite performance. Can we establish this in our non-sport professional organizations?

Sacrifice in Professional Business Environments

STOCK PHOTO

In the professional world, sacrifice is less visible but no less impactful. Professionals define sacrifice in terms of time investment, emotional bandwidth, and even reputational risk taken in the service of organizational goals. Unlike the time-boxed nature of sports seasons, business sacrifice is often long-term and cumulative. We all know this is harder to come by and depends on profound and exemplary alignment in the organization.

Indra Nooyi, former CEO of PepsiCo

Indra Nooyi, former CEO of PepsiCo, famously stated, “There is no such thing as work-life balance. There are work-life choices, and you make them, and they have consequences” (Fortune, 2015). This statement reflects a reality that many senior leaders live: making sacrifices not for external applause but for internal integrity and organizational continuity. For Nooyi, working extended hours, relocating for opportunity, and missing family moments were all decisions made consciously to serve something larger. The harsh reality of work in our modern world requires nothing less than hard work to be successful.

Steve Jobs, co-founder of Apple

Steve Jobs, co-founder of Apple, believed that passion for a mission necessitates sacrifice. In his 2005 Stanford Commencement address, he said, “You have to be burning with an idea, or a problem... If you’re not passionate enough from the start, you’ll never stick it out.” Jobs viewed personal sacrifice—sleep, comfort, even personal relationships—as integral to innovation. The willingness to sacrifice must start with your aim, and that aim must be at least partially aligned with the organization's goals. Or the organization enables you to achieve your goal. Aligning personal objectives with organizational objectives to the greatest extent possible drives alignment. Does your organization, or you, need work here?

Sheryl Sandberg, former COO at Meta

Sheryl Sandberg, former COO at Meta, echoed a similar sentiment in her book Lean In, where she describes that true leadership is measured not in power but in impact. “Leadership is about making others better as a result of your presence and making sure that impact lasts in your absence,” she writes (Sandberg, 2013). This philosophy implies sacrificing personal recognition to empower others and build enduring systems.

We’ve all heard it. And managers in positions responsible for developing talent and individuals with leadership potential have said it. Goes something like this: If you want to get ahead, you have to do more than the role requires. You have to arrive early, possibly stay late, and give up some weekends to do the hard work of not just keeping your current skills current, but also anticipating the skills you will need and taking action now. We know that employers don’t usually work in a bunch of discretionary time for employees to train.  Most income statements don’t have profitability.  Of course, there are exceptions. It is, in fact, the responsibility of the professional to do what it takes to develop skills used in the field of business. Just like Kobe Bryant, you need to work off the court to be the best on the court.

The good news is that it is easier now more than ever for professionals. Degrees like MBAs have been reduced in scope and/or specialized to save time, money, and effort. There are literally thousands of very specific training opportunities for not a lot of money on the web.  Professionals have possibly the most unique opportunity in history to efficiently add directly applicable skills for less money in less time. The net impact is less sacrifice for a bigger, more probable payoff. Like Peterson says, ‘the bargain with the future,’ has moved in the right direction for the professional.

Key Insight:

Sacrifice in the professional sphere fosters alignment between personal ambition and organizational mission. It creates a culture where people are willing to stay late to finish projects, step aside for more qualified voices, or take responsibility for team outcomes. According to a study by Gratton and Erickson (2007), high-performing business teams are marked by individuals willing to contribute beyond formal job boundaries. This form of sacrifice elevates team synergy and drives innovation by creating an environment of mutual commitment and reduced friction. Importantly, the lack of overt recognition for these sacrifices does not diminish their value; rather, it underscores the maturity and vision of those who make them. If we consider ‘personal forgoing’ in comparison to ‘organizational priorities,’ we arrive at mission-driven sacrifice. Very powerful. Never before has there been such an abundance of opportunity for professionals to target their efforts through self-education at such reasonable prices. Sacrifice might become easier? What do you think?

Sacrifice in the Military

STOCK PHOTO

Now, I’ve never personally been in the military. What strikes me is that if you invest a minute and listen to my other media with military, ranging from a Marine private to a one-star general, you’ll find varied takes regarding just what sacrifice is and how it impacts the unit and the leadership. It's fascinating. Based on some conversations and some research, in military culture, sacrifice is not symbolic; it is literal. Soldiers define sacrifice in terms of life-risk, hardship, endurance, and absolute subordination to a chain of command. This is perhaps the most extreme form of sacrifice, encompassing physical, emotional, and existential dimensions.  With that said, an Air Force Kernal said to me, "If I have to use my rank to get something done, it feels like failure to me."

General James Mattis

General James Mattis, in Call Sign Chaos, highlights how battlefield leadership demands complete selflessness. “The most important six inches on the battlefield is between your ears,” he writes, implying that mental discipline and emotional regulation—fueled by sacrifice—determine life or death (Mattis, 2019).

Jocko Willink, a former Navy Seal Commander

Jocko Willink, a former Navy SEAL commander, reinforces the centrality of sacrifice in his leadership philosophy. “Discipline equals freedom. Sacrifice is the foundation of discipline,” he asserts in Extreme Ownership (Willink, 2015). For Willink, the willingness to adhere to training, obey orders, and protect team members—even at personal cost—is what builds indomitable units.

The U.S. Army’s core values—Loyalty, Duty, Respect, Selfless Service, Honor, Integrity, and Personal Courage—are built entirely around the concept of personal sacrifice for collective mission success. Military training embeds this from day one, conditioning individuals to see themselves as part of an unbreakable chain. If you take the time to review my ‘Fellowship’ Podcast, you’ll hear a Marine Private discuss fire squad teams where the four-man unit revolves through the leadership role given the life-threatening risk of combat. Can we duplicate such innovative and effective approaches in our professional organizations?

Key Insight:

Sacrifice in the military is both a philosophical doctrine and an operational necessity. Studies such as those by Wong et al. (2003) on leadership in combat reveal that trust in military units stems directly from the observed and expected sacrifices of its members. Trust is not theoretical—it is practiced through acts of mutual risk, sustained hardship, and loyalty. Sacrifice cements bonds under fire, enhances morale, and sharpens decision-making. When the cost of failure is life itself, sacrifice may become non-negotiable and foundational to all strategy and execution.

The military has a unique situation where individuals sign up voluntarily with the understanding that death is a possibility. This is something a business, for instance, just doesn’t typically duplicate. However, I think it's more than this. I think there is an acceptance of the macro mission. That is to defend the Constitution of the United States and its citizens.  Therein lies a potential message for all of us. Check alignment to your mission vs. the individual’s.

My last insight I’ll share today with respect to the military is that each branch has its version of ‘boot camp.’ I recently asked Jon Macaskill, a retired Navy SEAL Commander, what the role of boot camp is exactly and whether it can be applied to non-military organizations. He first said it's designed to create a ‘cog-type’ nature to G.I.s, where they can plug into virtually any spot in that military branch. I asked if the intention was to establish behavioral norms and performance expectations. He generally agreed. Could we in the private sector establish our own version of a boot camp to establish behavioral norms and performance expectations?   Retired SEAL Commander Jon Macaskill agreed that it is a very interesting question. What do you think?

Comparative Analysis: Sports vs. Business vs. Military

Although the concept of sacrifice is central to elite performance in sports, business, and the military, its manifestation varies significantly depending on the context, stakes, and organizational culture. Nevertheless, commonalities emerge as we closely examine the role sacrifice plays in trust formulation, loyalty, individual alignment with the organization, identity construction, the pursuit of excellence, and the aspiration toward individual and organizational winning.

In the world of sports, sacrifice is typically visible, celebrated, and bound by defined seasons and competitions. Athletes sacrifice physical comfort, social normalcy, and personal time in a way that is not only culturally normalized but also publicly rewarded. The narrative arc of sports frequently includes overcoming injury, enduring grueling training, or relinquishing personal goals for the team—actions that fans, media, and peers recognize and valorize. These sacrifices often culminate in high-stakes moments—such as playoff runs or championship games—where the cumulative effects of years of sacrifice coalesce in a measurable outcome.

In contrast, the business world tends to obscure sacrifice beneath a veneer of professionalism and strategy. Business professionals are not typically cheered for working late, relinquishing credit, or relocating their families for strategic gains. Yet such sacrifices are omnipresent and essential to the organization’s growth. The ambiguity of the outcome, coupled with the slow and complex feedback loops in corporate settings, makes business sacrifice a more private and long-term endeavor. Unlike sports, where the scoreboard defines success, business often measures outcomes through quarterly reports, innovation metrics, and leadership evaluations—metrics that may never fully capture the depth of individual contribution. Yet, what we know is that those who want to get ahead put in exactly those efforts we’d likely use the word sacrifice to describe. Sacrifice is alive and well in professional organizations, remaining a key positive differentiator for both individuals and organizations.

Military sacrifice stands apart due to its existential stakes. Unlike sports and business, where careers and reputations are at risk, in military settings, life itself can be on the line. Military personnel are trained to subordinate their personal interests to the mission and their unit. This culture is so deeply embedded that acts of sacrifice—rushing into danger, defending a comrade, or enduring extreme physical conditions—are considered routine and expected. In fact, in my interview with the Navy SEAL Commander, he said, "actual combat or missions often are easier on the men than the training and preparation for the mission." The rituals, language, and ethos of the military reinforce sacrifice as the defining attribute of honor and valor. There is no parallel in business or sport that equates with the permanent and often anonymous nature of military sacrifice. Well, haven’t really found a good one yet. Do you have an example?

Despite these contextual differences, there are shared themes across all three environments:

1. First, sacrifice universally enhances trust. Whether it’s a basketball player passing the ball instead of taking the shot, a project manager promoting a junior teammate, or a soldier putting themselves in harm’s way, these actions communicate reliability and selflessness.

2. Second, sacrifice reinforces alignment with a larger mission. In all three environments, the most effective members are those who view their individual contributions as part of a broader, meaningful whole.

3. Third, sacrifice includes personal forgoing in the near term and puts the organizational priorities higher than individual priorities, at least in part. If we think of a dichotomy, or a two-axis system with individual forgoing on the horizontal axis and organizational priorities on the vertical, we get the desired upper right quadrant as ‘mission critical sacrifice.’ It’s important to note, having a third access of time, or another genre like family, career, friends, etc., makes this lens even more valuable. And I’ll add an astute point from Navy SEAL Commander, Jon Macaskill, who said, We need to consider the individual's energy. A manager or leader is no good to his team if he shows up with 1% in the tank. Sometimes, you have to make yourself the priority to recharge and recover so you are able to serve your team the best way you can.

4. Finally, sacrifice serves as a form of identity formation. High-functioning teams often define themselves by what they are willing to endure, forego, or give up in pursuit of their goals. The truth is that the phenomenon of being in it together drives fellowship as a result of the trust and loyalty exemplified by participation.

Yet the differences are equally instructive. In business, sacrifices are rarely visible, often delayed in their payoff, and sometimes never acknowledged. In sports, they are time-bound and often rewarded with fame or financial return. In the military, they are normalized, solemn, and in some cases, permanent. These differences suggest that while sacrifice is a universal principle of team success, its execution and recognition must be adapted to fit the organizational context. There is so much more!

Summary Table

Comparative Analysis: Sports vs. Business vs. Military

In summarizing the role of sacrifice across the domains of sports, business, and the military, a few key contrasts and similarities become apparent:

• In sports, sacrifice is defined primarily as a willingness to endure pain, delay gratification, and subordinate personal ambition for the sake of the team. Athletes sacrifice time, comfort, and often fame to uphold team cohesion. These acts are usually visible and time-bound, and they lead directly to observable outcomes like championships or records. The culture of sports celebrates sacrifice openly and uses it as a motivational anchor.

• In business, sacrifice is more nuanced. It includes working extended hours, giving credit to others, navigating political risks, and choosing long-term company goals over short-term personal gains. Business professionals often make sacrifices that are difficult to quantify and rarely rewarded directly. However, these sacrifices form the backbone of sustained success, organizational trust, and long-term career growth. And, to be sure, sacrifice happens at every level in the organization, not just at the top.

• In the military, sacrifice is elevated to the highest moral and operational level. It is defined by the willingness to endure extreme physical and emotional hardship, to obey orders without hesitation, and to risk or even lose one’s life. Sacrifice in this setting is ritualized, expected, and embedded in the training, doctrine, and value system of the military. It occurred to me that the military has various forms of boot camp and extreme training, as in the Navy’s SEALs. Could we duplicate this somehow in the workplace?

While each domain interprets and practices sacrifice differently, the underlying function is the same: it builds unity, establishes trust, and aligns individuals with a shared mission.

Career-Building Strategies for Non-Military, Non-Sport Professionals

Drawing on insights from across sectors, professionals in conventional work environments can apply the following strategies to leverage the power of sacrifice in advancing their careers and contributing to high-performing teams.

Strategy 1: Practice Purposeful Discomfort

STOCK PHOTO

Professionals should actively seek out and embrace discomfort as a deliberate growth strategy. This includes volunteering for difficult projects, accepting challenging roles outside one's comfort zone, and welcoming critical feedback. In the book, ‘Do Hard Things’ by Steve Magness, we learn that we can work outside of work at something sport, or endurance, or strength-based that will spill over into other parts of our lives. Deciding to run a marathon starts with walking around the block, but adding more each day or two. Pretty soon it's run for 200 ft. And so on. This is a way to build your human systems. You can practice physical, emotional, spiritual, and mental discomfort in a purposeful way through sport and athletics.  My experience with mountain biking has proven to me time and time again that endurance, courage, discipline, and grit all spill over in a positive way to all aspects of my life. Including my professional life. These acts of purposeful discomfort function as mini-sacrifices that not only sharpen skills but also demonstrate resilience and commitment to growth. In doing so, professionals build reputational capital, which is the cornerstone of influence and upward mobility.

Research from McKinsey & Company (2017) emphasizes that high-potential employees are often those who display “adaptive performance”—a trait that grows directly from stepping into discomfort zones. Whether it’s launching a new product, turning around a struggling team, or managing a contentious client relationship, discomfort is the currency of leadership development. I’d add to the McKinsey R&D that discomfort is the currency of every professional's development.

I’d also suggest a read of ‘Do Hard Things’ by Steve Magness. There are plenty of reads like this. Essentially, the hard thing makes the business or family hard thing more doable.

Strategy 2: Elevate Others Ahead of Yourself

STOCK PHOTO

Sacrificing personal recognition in favor of team success is a subtle but powerful career accelerator. Professionals should consistently look for ways to elevate colleagues by recognizing their contributions, mentoring less experienced teammates, and deflecting praise onto others when appropriate. These behaviors create psychological safety, foster loyalty, and position the individual as a true team leader.

Research by Adam Grant in Give and Take (2013) demonstrates that “givers”—those who help others succeed without expecting immediate reciprocity—tend to outperform their peers in long-term leadership roles. Elevating others is a strategic sacrifice that pays dividends in trust, team morale, and long-term influence.

Strategy 3: Adopt a Mission-First Mindset

STOCK PHOTO

Professionals should continually align their decisions with the organization’s overarching mission, even when it conflicts with personal preferences. This may mean turning down lucrative job offers elsewhere, supporting an unpopular but necessary organizational change, or relocating to serve a strategic market. Such sacrifices communicate deep alignment and maturity.

A mission-first mindset transforms sacrifice from a burden into a choice aligned with purpose. According to research published in the Harvard Business Review (Dhingra & Samo, 2020), employees who connect their daily work to a larger organizational purpose report higher engagement, resilience, and satisfaction. Making decisions through this lens ensures that sacrifices are not just reactive, but strategic and meaningful. And herein lies one of modern leadership's toughest challenges – getting their organizations truly aligned behind the mission; so much so that appropriate sacrifice starts to show up at all levels.

Conclusion

The concept of sacrifice transcends industry, profession, and environment. It is the invisible thread that ties together the extraordinary accomplishments of Olympic athletes, Fortune 500 executives, and frontline soldiers. Jordan Peterson’s assertion that sacrifice is the bargain with the future finds resounding evidence in the lives of those who have achieved mastery and impact through deliberate surrender.

Across domains, sacrifice plays three critical roles: it strengthens trust, aligns individuals with shared purpose, and defines collective identity. Whether in the visible sweat of a championship run, the quiet late nights in an office, or the life-risking discipline of a combat zone, sacrifice is the unifying currency of elite performance.

For modern professionals outside of sports and the military, sacrifice may appear less dramatic but is no less essential. To thrive in today’s complex, interconnected, and rapidly evolving workplaces, individuals must learn to sacrifice strategically. Discomfort, selflessness, and purpose must be chosen consciously and embraced repeatedly.

Excellence demands it. Teams require it. The future rewards it.

Sacrifice is the title and subject of one of my chapters in my upcoming book, “Intensity Multiplier Principles.” This particular principle of success is far-reaching and complex. Each of my principles utilizes a two-dimensional dichotomy to apply a lens to organizations, individuals, and leaders in order to determine improvement actions. There, we’ll work on more strategies to enhance both individual and organizational effectiveness. Look for more upcoming previews of this work. Don’t forget, you can contact me at my website to benefit from some of this work and improve you and your organization’s performance.

I hope you have gained valuable insight into your organization’s workings. I’d love to know what you think of this article – please like and share.

Paul T. Ayres

Business, Executive, Leadership & Life Coach

Email: paul@thefitprofessional1.com

Website: www.thefitprofessional1.com

Connect with me on socials!

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheFitProfessional1/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/thefitprofessional1

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fitpro1coach/

Professional Bibliography

• Bryant, K. (2018). The Mamba Mentality: How I play. MCD Books.

• Dhingra, N., & Samo, Z. (2020, October). Purpose: The new employee value proposition. Harvard Business Review, 24–31.

• Fletcher, D., & Wagstaff, C. R. D. (2009). Organizational psychology in elite sport: Its emergence, application and future. Psychology of Sport and Exercise, 10(4), 427–434.

• Fortune Magazine. (2015, May). The cost of leadership [Interview with Indra Nooyi].

• Grant, A. (2013). Give and take: Why helping others drives our success. Viking Press.

• Gratton, L., & Erickson, T. J. (2007, November). Eight ways to build collaborative teams. Harvard Business Review, 100–109.

• Jobs, S. (2005, June). Stanford Commencement Address. Stanford University.

• Lencioni, P. (2002). The five dysfunctions of a team: A leadership fable (p. 85). Jossey-Bass.

• Lloyd, C. (2016). When nobody was watching: My hard-fought journey to the top of the soccer world. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

• Mattis, J. (2019). Call sign chaos: Learning to lead. Random House.

• McKinsey & Company. (2017). Performance through disruption: Managing talent in times of change. Global Report.

• Peterson, J. B. (1999). Maps of meaning: The architecture of belief. Routledge.

• Peterson, J. B. (2018). 12 rules for life: An antidote to chaos (p. 193). Random House Canada.

• Saban, N. (2019). Interview on ESPN Gameday.

• Sandberg, S. (2013). Lean in: Women, work, and the will to lead. Knopf.

• TheFitProfessional1, LLC. (2025).

• U.S. Army. (2019). Army leadership: Doctrine and the profession (ADP 6-22). Headquarters, Department of the Army.

• Willink, J., & Babin, L. (2015). Extreme ownership: How U.S. Navy SEALs lead and win. St. Martin’s Press.

• Wong, L., et al. (2003). Why they fight: Combat motivation in the Iraq War. Strategic Studies Institute, U.S. Army War College.