Today I received my certificate as a Precision Nutrition Level 2 Master Coach, something I have been working on for 6 months.

However, I am not a Nutrition Coach.

I spend my time as a Leadership Coach, working with Entrepreneurs, C-Suite Executives, and Business Owners.

In the wisdom of "Leadership Development", there is usually a belief that you should not develop "horizontally", as in skills not related directly to your area of expertise.

That is also a bit of wisdom that I adhere to in my life.

So why would I spend 6-Months on a certification that seems to be in a different field of expertise than Leadership?

Not All Things Are As They Appear

There are 2 primary reasons I made the choice to pursue this certification.

The first has to do with Flow States.

One of the methods to induce deeper states of Flow, as well as fuel innovations in industries, is to find connections between seemingly different ideas.

The connection began as a simple understanding - For Leaders to be able to function well, they need high levels of Energy to accommodate the Demands of their lives.

What is one of the major ways to accomplish increased Energy?

Nutrition, plain and simple.

However, in my Rabbit Hold dive into everything, I have been led to a second reason this is important.

The greatest problem that ALL Leaders have is Stress.

Stress really comes down to one major issue - Not having enough Energy to meet Demands.

It's a survival instinct, if you have plenty of Energy then your body doesn't feel Stress as deeply or as long, and when you lack Energy your body does everything in its power to "preserve" itself.

Which led to this conclusion - Fix the Energy problem, fix the Stress problem.

Now, there are a variety of ways to begin fixing the Stress problem (many of which I am already certified in or am working on getting certifications in), however, Nutrition plays a VERY special role.

Nutrition's Role In Leadership

See, in order to produce Energy, the body has a variety of components that are necessary.

When you are missing these components, you not only are unable to create Energy, but you ALSO create more Stress!

It becomes a self-feeding cycle.

Leaders have to face the largest stresses which requires Energy, then they don't have the right building blocks to create more Energy.

Leaders must continue to face those largest Stresses while unable to create Energy which itself creates more Stress!

The cycle continues, things get worse, burnout ensues and we crash.

So, if we understand how to quickly and efficiently produce Energy, we lower our internal Stress which allows us to face the Stresses of work.

All Stress adds together, and since we are at an all-time high of Burnout, the only solution is to figure out how to reduce Stress as quickly and efficiently as possible.