Olympic Champion Shawn Johnson told Bob Costas that before her gold medal on the high beam, she was not feeling well because as expected, she pushed herself to her “physical and mental limit”.

Being the best in sport or business takes serious sacrifice and discipline. Whether it is eating 12,000 calories a day like Michael Phelps or eating peanut butter and jelly for weeks like some entrepreneurs– it’s all about hard work.

These athletes have set their goals, created a plan of attack and had coaches and trainers pushing them to stay on track. Their schedules and discipline allowed them to raise to the become the best in the world.

If you want to be the best in the world in business, it too takes coaches to keep you on track. A board of advisers, mentor, or personal assistant can keep you on track just like Johnson or Phelps’ coaches–but the only person who can really make you achieve your goals is you.

Are you pushing yourself to your physical and mental limit?