Making Sure You Saw This...

A few updates designed to help you win more and live better.

Author

Zach Brandon
December 02, 2025

Special Announcement:

Hey everyone,

I wanted to share a quick update and re-introduce myself to the many new faces here.

After a decade working inside elite sport (including seven years leading mental performance and coach development with the Arizona Diamondbacks), I recently made the decision to step down from my full-time role. I shared some of the why behind this decision in a recent episode of my podcast (listen here).

Part of this was the deep pull I’ve felt to serve sport coaches and leaders more directly.

The other part was personal. I want to be home more with my family and not watch my kids grow up through FaceTime, while on the road. It’s been a big transition, but absolutely the right one.

A significant driver of this next chapter comes from what I’ve seen and heard from so many coaches in private over the past few years. Most coaches won’t say it publicly, but privately they’re carrying a lot:

  • Burnout from always being “on” and never fully recharging due to a never-ending to-do list.

  • Isolation because there’s rarely space for honest feedback or processing what they’re truly feeling.

  • Lingering self-doubt amidst difficult decisions, performance woes, and job insecurity.

  • Conflict that drains emotional energy and never fully resolves.

  • Scattered focus from constantly shifting between fires, fixes, and to-do lists.

  • Stagnation in their own growth and whether they’re still becoming the kind of leader they set out to be.

Here’s the bottom line I’ve observed for elite coaches: You pour everything into your players, staff, and culture. But very few people are checking in on you. That’s the gap I feel called to fill.

A Quick Re-Introduction

I’m Zach Brandon, a Leadership and Performance Advisor and former Head of Mental Performance & Coach Development in Major League Baseball. For the past decade, I’ve partnered with All-Star professional baseball players, Olympic athletes, and elite-level coaches across collegiate and professional sport to help them win more and live better.

My coaching framework and system were built by pressure-testing them in real-world environments by blending performance psychology, leadership science, and systems design to help coaches create sustainable winning environments for themselves and for those they lead.

Free Coaching Calls

As part of this next chapter, I’m opening up my calendar for free coaching calls for any collegiate and professional sport coach or executive who wants support, perspective, or simply a space to think out loud with a partner. I’ve got space for 3 new coaching clients in 2026.

Whether you’re navigating a challenge or simply want to increase your leadership ability, I’d love to connect and explore how I can best serve you.

If You’re Not Ready to Commit to 1:1 Coaching, Here’s Other Ways to Invest in Your Growth

Not every coach is ready for a coaching partnership and that’s completely fine. My goal is to create multiple pathways for learning and support so you get exactly what you need (even if that means re-directing you to a better resource!).

  1. The Threshold Lab Podcast (soon-to-be re-branded as the Win More, Live Better podcast)

If you're already subscribed, thank you. In just seven months, this podcast has become a Top 10% ranked show globally and each episode is designed to give you stories, mental models, and leadership principles you can immediately use with your team.

You’ll also find guest conversations with some of the best minds and leaders in sport and high performance. These episodes can also be watched on YouTube.

  1. “The Essentials” (a brand-new Friday segment in this newsletter)

Inspired a bit from Andrew Huberman’s podcast, on Fridays I’ll begin sharing a short list of the most valuable video clips I find from coaches or high performers discussing principles and lessons on mindset, leadership, or culture.

This segment is designed to save you time so there’s no endless scrolling, no sifting through noise, no hoping the algorithm surfaces something useful. I’ll curate only the clips that are worth your attention and worth sharing with those you lead.

A commitment from me…if I wouldn’t personally use a clip with a coach or team, I won’t send it (which means some weeks I may not send anything). But when I do share this edition of the newsletter, it will only be curated, high-utility essentials and nothing more, nothing less.

  1. More ways to learn, grow, and stay connected

Over the next few months, I’ll be sharing more of the frameworks, lessons, and systems I’ve developed and pressure-tested in elite sport.

I’ll also be rolling out new ways to learn from (and with) me, including more interactive conversations, deeper dives into coaching challenges, and opportunities to connect with other high-performing coaches across sports.

And if you want additional touchpoints throughout the week, I’ll continue sharing stories, insights, and principles across a few social platforms where many of you already follow along:

If there’s something specific you want to learn, a challenge you’re wrestling with, or a topic you’d like me to break down, just hit reply to any of these emails.

I want these emails to be genuinely useful and the kind you look forward to opening each week.

And if there’s any way I can support you more directly, feel free to reach out or schedule a call here: https://calendly.com/zachbrandon/connection-call

Grateful you’re here,
ZB