We surveyed thousands to better understand the healthy, and not so healthy, qualities of peak performers.

February 7, 2020 8 min read

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

The following article is based on excerpts from Ben Angel's book,Unstoppable: A 90-Day Plan to Biohack Your Mind and Body for Success. Buy it now from Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iBooks | IndieBound. And be sure to orderThe Unstoppable Journal, the only journal of its kind based on neuroscience, psychology andbiohacking to help you reach your goals.

When it comes to our identity, we tend to think it's fixed forever, but the reality is, our identities evolve as we gain skillsand experience new things. Still, one factor rarely considered is our energy levels. If you take a personality test when you're feeling your absolute best, you're going to get one result, but what happens whenyou suddenly introduce a nutritional deficiency, fatigue or toxins into yoursystem? Your personality and behavior are going to change significantly. You'll most likely become depressed, anxious andeven angry, start making excusesand suddenly want to quit. In other words, the process bywhich we assesspeak performance typically looksat one side of the equation psychology at the expense of prioritizingour biology andbiochemistry.

Related: What's Your Entrepreneurial Personality Type?

In a hustle-until-you-die culture, it's important to understand that you can't pay a high psychological price without paying a high biological one. That's why my team and I consulteddoctors, clinical social workers, psychologists, neuroscientists and nutritionists and identifiedfour specific identity types of succesful people Defenders, Guardians, Synergists and Catalysts and broke down their hysical andpsychological energy capacities. We then conducted a survey of 43,000 successful business people from all over the world to get a clearer sense of their distinct daily habits.

Read through the identity types below, and see which one you can relate to the most.

This category representsthe epitome of conscious creators and peak performers. They have the physical and psychological energy requirements to go out and reach their most ambitious goals. Considered the key drivers for change in society, their biology supports all aspects of their cerebral endeavors, and they are able to combatmyriaddaily stressors. They track their progress daily and can pinpoint any issues to make corrections immediately.

Oursurvey of Catalysts reported the following:

Synergists are on the cusp of this 50 percentthreshold, and thuscould go either way. They may elevate themselves through rest and recovery and turn themselves into a Catalyst, but if they do too much psychological output, they're going to pay a biological price, which will see them drop below the 50 percent threshold and turn themselves into a Defender orGuardian.

In oursurvey, Synergists reported the following:

When we sit below the50 percentthreshold, we can experience symptoms includinganxiety, fear, depression and more. This is a situation where we actually need to go out and seek medical attention, because it's not just your psychology that's off, but also your biology.

In this case, once we biohack our biology, brain and psychology, it all comes back into alignment and we start feeling better. In this state, we're also susceptible to unconscious creation, simply because we've turned on self-preservation mode.

In oursurvey, Guardians reported the following:

If you are here, you need to get to a functional-medicine doctor immediately. Defenders are protecting what little physiological and psychological energy they have left to defend themselves from further attack from stress, toxins, inflammationand poor diet. Defender mode can be triggered by numerous changes, including a change in the stomach's microbiome, a course of antibiotics, chronic stress, inflammation, a traumatic event, poor sleep and medications.

In our survey, Defenders reported the following:

When we hit below the stated 50 percentthreshold, our primal mind takes control of the situation because our brains and bodies are starved of energy and specific nutrients. When self-preservation mode comes on, we're in that constant state of fight or flight wherewe're anxious about everything andalways thinkingthe worst-case situation is going to occur. We also make lots of excuses.

What's really fascinating is that, in surveying 43,000 people internationally, we uncovered that six percent of people could be classified as Catalysts, 39.4 percent wereSynergists and more than 54.6 percentwere Guardians and Defenders exhausted individualswho can't think clearly and experiencebrain fog and potentially depression.

So, what does this result actually tell us? That a vast percentage of the population is strugglingnot just with their psychology, but also their biology.

Related: The 7 Traits of Successul Entrepreneurs

The problem with our current society is when individuals start procrastinating ornot wanting to get off the couch, we diagnose them as having a weak mental attitude, as if they just need to toughen up and get on with the job. But the problem with willpower is its finite.

Nutritional deficiencies, gut-health issues, excessive caffeine consumption and side effects from medications andtoxinscan mimic psychological disorders including anxiety, aggression and depression. So, if someone is trying to reach an ambitious goal, but their energetic requirements don't meet the needs for them to achieve it, then the primal mind is going to make that decision. Yes, you can push through with willpower for some time, but when that runs out, you're going to burn out.

Andas we can see in the statistics for eachidentity type, an individuals overall mental health isinked to excessive chronic pain, excessive medication use, inflammation, poor dietary habits, poor gut health and a lack of purpose. Anyone suffering from these symptonsmustfirst identify what these underlying issues and triggers are, address them, get them out of the way and fuel their brain so theycan do the hard psychological work. Suddenly, you won't need to apply willpower anymore, because you'll beoperating at your absolute best. Now, what identity type are you?

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Identifying the 4 Unique Types of Successful People - Entrepreneur