We’ve guided over 100 CEOs through underwater breath holds. People who are used to making high-stakes decisions with confidence… now floating face-down in a pool, breath held, still — with no urgency for anything except the one thing they’re there to resist: breathing. No phones. No noise. No titles. Just water, silence — and the truth that shows up in stillness.

It sounds poetic, but I can assure you, you can feel the internal battle happening in front of you from several feet away.

It’s Not About the Breath or Time Underwater

Technically, yes, it’s a breath-hold exercise. But that’s not the point. The breath is just the door. Most leaders I meet are caught in a cycle of constant output — decisions, meetings, expectations. Always performing. Always “on.” But when you strip that away — when they’re alone with their breath, or without it — something raw and real shows up.

We don’t teach people to hold their breath. We teach them to expand their capacity — first mentally, then physically. The breath-hold is just a mirror. And what I’ve seen, over and over, is that the moment they come up gasping isn’t when their body needed air. It’s when their mind thought it did.

That edge — between perception and reality — is where the gold lives.

Perceived Limits vs. Real Potential

Most people live inside self-imposed ceilings. They say things like “I’m not that kind of person,” or “I could never…”

And then I watch those same people — the ones who swear they can’t last 30 seconds — go past two minutes. Not by pushing harder. But by letting go.

Letting go of tension. Of fear. Of the inner voice that’s been quietly lying to them for years. That realization doesn’t stay in the pool. It ripples into the way they lead. The way they listen. The way they face pressure.

Beyond the Known Zone

We often talk about comfort zones as if there’s only one — the place where things are familiar, easy, and predictable. But through our work, we've come to see that there are actually three distinct zones most people operate within: The Known Zone, The Ambition Zone, and The Potential Zone. You can learn more about how we define them here: Understanding Comfort Zones.

The truth? Most people live their lives bouncing between the Known and Ambition Zones. They achieve, strive, succeed — but rarely touch their true capacity. Not because it’s out of reach, but because they’ve never been taught how to access it. Worse, they're never rewarded for venturing into it.

We love showing people what that zone looks like for them.

That’s the space we create — experiences that help people step into their Potential Zone. Not through force, but through presence. Through discomfort. Through meeting themselves in a moment that feels real.

And when that happens — whether underwater, in nature, or in stillness — something shifts. And it stays with them long after they’ve dried off.

What Surfaces With Them

When a leader comes out of the water, something subtle shifts. They realize: “I had more in me than I thought.” And that changes how they show up. At work. At home. Under pressure. In uncertainty. In those precise situations where their best is needed — and the hardest to access. It’s not just confidence — it’s clarity. Calm. Presence.

They’re no longer reacting from stress. They’re responding from depth.

So… What’s Your Water?

You don’t need to hold your breath underwater with us. But we highly recommend you do find your edge — regularly. Where in your life are you operating inside perceived limits? What would it look like to stretch — not recklessly, but intentionally — beyond your Known and Ambition Zones?

That’s the work of The Rebel Path (our method for maximizing everyone's potential). And of every experience we build. It’s not about becoming someone new. It’s about remembering how powerful you’ve been all along.