092: "How Does the Transition From Performer to Leader Look Like?" ft. Ann Rivera

In this episode, Erik sits down with coach and former pro athlete Ann Rivera for a wild, gritty, and deeply human conversation on what it really takes to perform at your peak—when the odds are stacked, the rules don’t fit, and you have to reinvent the game to stay in it. From cold-calling European volleyball teams in the pre-internet 90s to coaching executives in Spanish boardrooms, Ann’s story is an unfiltered look at how survival mode, punk rock rebellion, and sheer audacity became her personal playbook for leadership, coaching, and building high performers in business.

👤 About the Guest

Ann Rivera is a former professional volleyball player turned performance coach who works with high-performing athletes, executives, and teams to cultivate flow, resilience, and purpose. Drawing from years of real-world grit—from competing overseas to teaching English to corporate leaders—Ann’s coaching centers on emotional honesty, systems of accountability, and activating untapped potential. She’s known for her deep listening, bold truth-telling, and ability to help even the most resistant high-achievers transform.

🧭 Conversation Highlights

• How punk rock rebellion, rage, and being told “you’re not worth it” forged Ann’s performance mindset
• Writing 100 letters to European volleyball teams as her own agent—and why it worked
• Performing tryouts in foreign languages with no GPS, no phone, and a Walkman-fueled mindset routine
• The hidden traps of flow state when transitioning from performer to leader
• The coaching skill that changes everything: radical, reflective listening
• Why most companies fail to replicate the stakes and feedback loops of elite sports
• What happens when grit gets built from survival mode—and how to coach through it
• How Ann responds to resistance and sabotage in the room with curiosity and courage

💡 Key Takeaways

• Grit isn’t glam—it’s often forged in fear, rage, and rebellion. And that’s okay.
• Performance in sports and business breaks down the same way: expectations, comparisons, and fear of consequence.
• Your job as a leader isn’t just to chase outcomes. It’s to build rituals and systems that support the process.
• Coaching works when it meets someone at their edge—and holds them there with love and rigor.
• The best coaches don’t tell you what to do. They listen so deeply that you hear yourself more clearly.

❓ Questions That Mattered

• “Where did that rage and rebellion come from—and how did it become your rocket fuel?”
• “How do you help high-performers identify their mindset glitches and recalibrate their process?”
• “Why do we abandon performance routines in business that we know are essential in sports?”
• “What does it really mean to hold someone accountable—without breaking them?”
• “How do you coach someone who thinks they already have it all figured out?”

🗣️ Notable Quotes

“Every match felt like a tryout. So I wrote a letter to the opposing coach saying, ‘watch how I play—I might be a player for your team next year.’ That’s sales.”

“The world doesn’t tell you to be who you are. It tells you to fit the mold. That was never gonna work for me.”

“A lot of people are already high performers. What they need is help with their edge—the part of them that’s afraid to be uncomfortable.”

“The Walkman. The playlist. The candle. That was how I got in flow. That was the difference between drowning and dominating.”

“Coaching is not about having the answers. It’s about seeing clearly, listening deeply, and being brave enough to hold space for the truth.”

🔗 Links & Resources

• Read all about Ann's work at www.coachannrivera.com