Ret. US Navy Commander, World Renowned High-Performance Psychologist, Former Head Psychologist for the US Navy SEALs, and Executive Performance Consultant
Eric Potterat, Ph.D. is considered one of the leading experts in high performance psychology, performance optimization, and individual & organizational resilience. He retired as a Commander in the Navy after 20 years of service, the last 10 of which he served as the Head Psychologist for the US Navy SEALs and was responsible for all the psychological assessment, selection, development, maintenance and enhancement programs for all Navy SEALs worldwide.
Dr. Eric Potterat is a clinical and high performance psychologist who has coached and consulted thousands of elite performers, including the Navy SEALs, the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Miami Heat, the US Woman’s National Soccer Team, medical professionals and corporate executives, to achieve high performance and excellence in their fields. He has worked in a variety of industries by aiding in talent acquisition, resiliency training, high-performance culture building, change management, leadership development, and service enhancement.
As a retired U.S. Navy Commander, Dr. Potterat served as the head psychologist for the U.S. Navy SEALS for 10 of his 20 years in the Navy.
He was instrumental in creating and implementing mental assessment and enhancement programs that honed some of the nation’s most elite warriors and performers. His expertise was further recognized when he joined the Los Angeles Dodgers as the Director of Specialized Performance Programs; under his guidance, the team clinched victory in the 2020 World Series and three National League Championships. Dr. Potterat also played a pivotal role as a high-performance psychologist for Red Bull athletes and was the performance psychologist for the US Women’s National Soccer Team when they won the 2019 FIFA World Cup.
With over 30 years of extensive research and practice focusing on actionable mental performance techniques, stress resilience, character development, decision-making under stress, and mental toughness training, Dr. Potterat is renowned as one of the leading experts on individual and organizational resilience and excellence in performance. He has personally worked with over 25,000 elite performers across diverse fields, including business, military, athletics, medicine, and law. His insights into the science of mental toughness underscore the principle that the techniques driving the success of elite performers are teachable and accessible to all.
Dr. Potterat has been featured on national media and is the co-author of Learned Excellence: Mental Disciplines for Leading and Winning from the World’s Top Performers.
Eric Potterat on the Culture of High Performing Teams
Eric Potterat: How to Become an Elite Performer
Eric Potterat: How to Set Goals Like a High Performer
Eric Potterat on the Elite Performer Mindset
Eric Potterat’s Speech Topics
Learned Excellence: The Key Performance Optimization Factors of High Performing Individuals and Teams
In this speech, Dr. Eric Potterat brings the mental disciplines, principles and tactics of high performance to the audience in a clear and practical approach. He provides a road map for leaders to perform at their very best in every aspect of their lives. The five mental disciplines that Dr. Potterat speaks about are based on scientific research and proven practices that have been used with thousands of elite performers. Dr. Potterat leaves the audience with an understanding of the five principles of learned excellence:
Values & Goals: Helps identify core values and align them with goals.
Mindset: Helps leaders develop a growth mindset, which is the belief that one can improve their abilities through effort and feedback. It also helps overcome limiting beliefs, embrace challenges, and learn from failures.
Process: This discipline helps focus on the process rather than the outcome. It also helps one to optimize performance by using routines, rituals, and cues that enhance concentration, confidence, and motivation.
Adversity Tolerance: Helps to cope with stress and adversity. It also helps control emotional and physiological responses, and how to use positive self-talk, and reframe negative situations into opportunities for growth.
Balance & Recovery: Helps maintain a healthy balance between work and life and to recover from physical and mental fatigue by using strategies such as sleep, nutrition, hydration, exercise, meditation, and social support.