What our clients say

 

“What I have learned the most about myself with this program is how effective my mental thought process can be.  When I’m mentally focused and when my mental thought process is in the right place, I am a much better player than when I’m not.”
     --Chad Pennington, NFL Quarterback Miami Dolphins  

"I learned a lot from going through Dr. Csoka's program at Apex Performance. Most importantly I learned that getting better mentally takes practice. I had always thought that just meeting with someone would make me perform better but that couldn't be further from the truth.  It takes hard work every day to become stronger mentally.

Another important thing I learned from Dr. Csoka was a breathing technique to help me remain calm and focused under pressure.  It is a technique that has bailed me out of a few jams and it is something that I use in my personal life as well."
     --Johnson Wagner, Professional Golfer, Member of the PGA Tour

 “I am very calm and focused when I am driving a race car. But where I found this training to be very valuable is in the process of getting a sponsor. I never realized what a stressful process this would be and how critical positive thinking, clear focus and managing my stress levels would be to achieving my goal of finding a sponsor.
     --Leilani Münter, NASCAR AutoZone Elite Division and ARCA Re/Max Series driver

“I wanted to increase my accuracy on field goals. I felt that my kicking needed more focus and I was looking to acquire the skills necessary to perform at a higher level. My first year working with Dr. Csoka I had my best training camp ever! Not only were my mental skills continually improving, but they were working in game conditions, not just practice. As an athlete, Dr. Csoka gave me some tools to use that provided direct feedback. Combining visualization with goal setting and the other techniques enabled me to perform at a higher level, while minimizing stress and improving my overall happiness. Seriously, when I follow the program, I was killing the ball and having a great time doing it. As I transition to the business world, the skills I have learned will separate me from the pack. I will be able to maintain a higher level of work through the year because APEX taught me balance. In the business world, burn out is common. People, in general, don’t deal with stress. Moving forward, stress will be the least of my worries." 
     --Billy Cundiff, NFL Kicker Baltimore Ravens   

 “Without doubt,  I would never have achieved the things I did here at West Point without the performance enhancement training I received at the Performance Enhancement Center. Not only did I accomplish all my goals in football, but I was able to do so while maintain the high academic and leadership standards required of all cadets. You just can’t be world class without this kind of mental training." 
     --Mike Mayweather, All-American, All-Time Army Rushing Record and Heisman Trophy Nominee

 “My first introduction to “performance enhancement” was at West Point in the early 90s as part of the Army Football Team.  Since then my preparation for any type of competition or stressful event has never been the same.  As a placekicker, dealing with stress is part of the job and how you prepare for that stress can be the difference between success or failure.  Colonel Csoka and his team taught me how to recognize and better control normal human reactions to stress such as increased body temperature, perspiration, and heart-rate.  The ability to visualize an event and then become more comfortable with the situation through mental rehearsal has helped me as an athlete, an officer, a Blackhawk Pilot and business professional.”
     --Patmon Malcolm – Army Football now Investment Advisor 

 

 

“While I felt comfortable with the process of goal setting before my experience in the Peak Performance Training, linking this process to specific affirmations and visualization was a major learning for me. I have actually used my learning in this area [stress/energy management] more than any of the others. I regularly step back from what is going on to focus on my breathing and ‘get into the zone.’ This is becoming second-nature to me now in preparation for board meetings, analyst presentations, speaking before large groups of employees, quarterly conference calls, to mention only a few of the most recent examples."
     --Fred Rockwood - Chief Executive Officer, Hillenbrand
    Click here to see a short video of Fred Rockwood discussing his experience with Apex Performance.

"It works. The proof is in the results...improved focus, greater productivity, better preparation and higher confidence. However, I believe the greatest benefit to the APEX training program is the transferability to everything you do - whether physical, mental or other. I also received the training as an athlete and soldier at the US Military Academy many years ago under Dr Csoka and it helped me go from 3rd team to 1st team. It definitely proved the two old sports adages: mind-over-matter and 90% mental. I had always been able to physically outwork my peers, but that only took me so far. The techniques taught by Dr Csoka really helped me sharpen my mental tools. Through his training, I was able to focus in on the critical few while eliminating the distractions and noise that lead to wasted time & energy. I still use many of these techniques today. As I’ve aged, the stamina isn’t what it used to be. The ability to control the mental over the physical continues to help me conquer both personal and corporate hurdles. Whether on the sports fields, battlefields or board rooms, it definitely gives me a ‘mental’ edge over the competition."

   --Arlen Smith, Army Running Back, Director of Service General Electric

 

“I have been listening to the relaxation CD almost everyday. I have also been doing the Mindshaper 6-week program. I am into the third week and I can see and feel definite improvement. I bought a book on Photo Reading, and combined with Mindshaper and the Freeze Framer my reading speed and comprehension has increased dramatically over just the last three weeks, a skill essential to my new job.” 
     --Bryan Roach - Institutional Investment Analyst, Janus

 

 “I used the relaxation techniques in advance of a high-stress presentation to our executive management committee earlier this week and it was fantastic! I know that I lowered the stress going into the presentation with excellent results from the first words out of my mouth.  Generally (prior to using these techniques) I would go with the flow in terms of where my body's state was.  Sometimes this resulted in a less than ideal "kickoff" to the presentation and I'd need to let the good state evolve over time during the course of the presentation.  What a difference to begin with full assurance over the mental state (heart and mind).” 
     --Stewart A. Sutton - Chief Knowledge Officer, The Aerospace Corporation

 

“The Peak Performance Center was pivotal in allowing me to conquer stress and to reach new levels of business performance during the most challenging point of my career. The science behind the Peak Performance Center validated and provided measurable results that years of personal coaching could not. It made it ‘real’.”
     --Don Maier - Senior Vice President, North American Operations, Fortune 500 Healthcare Company

 

 “The training was excellent. Upon my return to work I was surprised by the feedback from co-workers. Within the first half of the day comments were made concerning my observed state of calm during adverse situations and ability to remain focused.  I use the techniques daily and they work, but they must be practiced with consistency. This is an excellent tool that has limitless potential not only to enhance performance but maximize benefits gained from all types of training. Thanks for the experience.” 
     --Keith Vaughan - Training and Development Manager, Corning Inc.

 

“The psychology of success is an enduring topic for research and training. Tony Robbins, Brian Tracey, Wayne Dwyer and others have made fortunes based on preaching about the power of the mind as a shaper of our destiny. The issue is that it all sounds like a pitch from a snake-oil salesman. It's a mixture clichés, bland assumptions and pop psychology - and probably a considerable amount of truth as well.

 Louis Csoka addresses many of the same topics as those Robbins et al. but the difference is that he knows what he is talking about. His simple five-component peak performance model is research-based and rigorously tested at WestPoint and on the battlefield. And it's supported by a range of technology tools that enable people to advance their performance skills.  He clearly knows how to teach peak performance and effective leadership. His speaking style is energetic and engaging; his content is thoughtful and fact based. He draws on a rich reservoir of experience and stories that are based on his multi faceted career as a military officer, educator, HR executive and management coach. The battle for success begins in the mind and Louis Csoka knows how to help people gain control of the critical cognitive strategies that underpin successful action. Now if we could only get people in the corporate world to take the time to do this...” 
     --David Owens - Chief Knowledge Officer, Bausch & Lomb

 

“Louis Csoka brings a unique point of view on what it takes to attain human peak performance in those moments when it counts most.  Drawing upon a distinguished career in the Army during which he developed and tested many of the ideas and practices he advocates, Louis involves his audiences in an array of easy-to-understand practical applications that illustrate how the mind Is not something to be ignored or take-for-granted.  Rather, he demonstrates with great conviction, how we can and, indeed, must train ourselves to focus our mental energies on those things that make a difference in all facets of our lives, and above all, to be prepared to reach our utmost human potential in those circumstances where it truly matters.

 Louis deploys a quick wit and sly humor to engage his audience.  His stories and anecdotes pulled from his years of enabling professionals, managers, athletes, and others to reach new personal performance levels bring a genuine sense of realism and possibilities to his presentations.  His passion for stretching others—professionally, intellectually, emotionally-- is palpable; he strives to make us all aware that too often we expect too little from ourselves.  You can’t walk away from a session with Louis without being provoked not only to engage in new forms of self-reflection about our own capabilities but to actually do something to enhance them—and to know that you can do so.”
     --Liam Fahey - President, The Leadership Network

 

"The peak performance training taught me that the precursor to high performance is self mastery.” 
     -Vice President, Logistics

 

“I honestly don’t know how I would have managed the last 6-9 months without this intervention. I have developed greater capacity to detach from stressful circumstances and approach issues with a greater calm.” 
     --Vice President, Health Care Services

 

“In October, we were behind in a new product launch…After some of the peak performance experience, especially the positive thinking and goal setting affirmations, I engaged my team to rethink how we were thinking about the goal and the ‘catastrophic thinking’ mode in which we had found outselves. I found myself more reenergized and refocused on the original goal and the clear path for getting there. Sales have accelerated and the team in energized.” 
     --Vice President, Marketing 

“My peak performance training has been life changing…with resulting composure and perspective that allows me to listen and communicate simultaneously to achieve results otherwise undermined by emotion and fear.”   
     --General Counsel

 

"The return on this investment is incredible if you apply the model, tools, coaching appropriately. There is no mountain that is too tall to climb for me and my team because of “Peak Performance” learning.” 
     -Vice President, Human Resources

 

 

 

 “I have experienced a “life shift” with what I have learned here. I never realized the power of being able to directly control what and how I think and then having that directly affect how I perform. There is another whole level of self-control and performance that I am just now able to realize and to affect.”
     --Director, Department of Labor, US Government 

 “I use positive/effective thinking with my staff. When one of the staff members begins to think negatively about a work situation, I turn it around into a positive idea. I have also used it with my daughter when she becomes discouraged with challenging assignments.”
     --Branch Chief, Department of Agriculture, US Government

“I find myself using the training when speaking with my subordinates, as I am impatient. I concentrate on listening better, as a result of the from attention training, so they feel valued. I have also used this to manage my boss when he goes off on tangents. As a side, I used this for my bowling and saw improvement in my scores!”
     --Human Resources Specialist, Department of the Air Force, US Government