The following are a handful of the publications that have had the most impact on the ESP Process. In our study, we were diligent about giving credit where credit was due.  We wanted to do the same on this website.  The secrets of our process are locked inside these books and in our testing facility.

We will often blog about books that we have read on the topics of motivation, business, sport and others, so as a member you will get the recommendations that we make.  One of the books that is a must-read for parents who have children who are competing either scholastically or athletically is “The Talent Code” by Daniel Coyle.

 

 

 

The Sports Gene, by David Epstein, is a great read and goes into great detail about genetics and sport. It verified quite a bit of information that we at ESP felt like our findings were showing us. While some sports are dependent on the right genetics, others are not.  The higher the level the skill and lower the level of athleticism the more important training becomes.

 

 

 

 

Practice Perfect: The 42 Rules of Getting Getter at Getting Better, by Doug Lemov, Erica Woolway and Katie Yezzi, was an eye opener.  Perfect practice is crucial and needs to be studied. In a nutshell, practice does not make perfect—it makes permanent. If you practice the right things wrong, or the wrong things right, you will permanently encode substandard performance. In other words, practicing the same thing over and over in the wrong way will only make you better at doing it wrong.

 

 

 

 

The Power of Full Engagement, by Jim Loehr and Tony Schwartz, is an insightful read and compares our business work week to that of elite athletes.  This is the book that started me down the path of an enhanced process for business. If I could do it in sales, I knew I could do it in the field.  The results were astounding.

 

 

 

 

Talent is Overrated, by Geoff Colvin, talks about practice in a different way. “Deep Practice” is something that very few people do.  One of his best analogies that he used was that of comedian Chris Rock.  In preparation for his show at Madison Square Gardens, Rock tried material for 18 months and removed all of the material that consistently didn’t get laughs.  This is how we should approach practice: breaking down the talent into small chunks.  Overall a really great read.