"As we build our teams and our organization, the San Antonio Spurs rely on values as our first filter for selecting players, coaches, and staff. Basketball is a global sport. Our program has engaged players, coaches, and staff from more than 20 countries around the world. Shared values including character provide alignment to build elite teams. Through character and diversity, the Spurs compete by recognizing our obligations to each other as people, not just as performers. Better Humans Better Performance makes clear through research and stories how performance starts with relationships—the order matters. We learn that virtue is the best relationship technology ever invented. Virtue is the language of excellence that cuts across time and borders. To create the high-performing organization of the future, it is powerful to look backward to this ancient wisdom. Character defined as virtue has a profound performance impact on culture, teamwork, resiliency, coaching, families, innovation, diversity, and more. Better Humans Better Performance captures why the word compete means “strive together.”

“Cleveland Clinic London caregivers learned to perform at an elite level despite the pressures and uncertainties created initially by Brexit and then the global pandemic. These conditions stretched and strengthened our ability to perform despite continually changing adversity. We learned to normalize discomfort and build resilience to successfully design, build, activate, and open a new private healthcare system located in central London. We had no choice but to manage and thrive under pressure. We focused with intentionality to build a resilient culture by investing in the ideas outlined in Better Humans Better Performance. The empirical insights on how purpose, social support, and virtue affect performance and engagement were well received. How do we know the ideas from Better Humans Better Performance created a resilient culture despite pressure and uncertainty? In addition to the enriching the culture we built to recruit and retain nearly 1,200 people to the Cleveland Clinic London team, we were also proud to have achieved engagement scores that were among the highest in the clinic’s system of 70,000 caregivers.”

“Dr. Peter Rea provides a leadership lens that suggests a practical and potentially impactful roadmap to better performance in both a leading role in the workplace and in life. In asking us to consider how we view our virtues when we interact with others, we can learn to be better humans, which ultimately impacts how we lead. As a convener of leaders, operating Leadership Cleveland, a program designed to bring new and thought-provoking information about what it takes to be a great leader, I can attest to the value of Peter’s thoughts on organizational culture, teamwork, engagement, hiring and training, coaching, developing good habits, and especially in today’s world, being resilient and innovative. I highly recommend sharing his work with anyone who desires to become a better leader and a better human. Leading isn’t easy. Peter challenges you to think about who you are and who you can become.”

“Decades of work with elite performers across domains as diverse as sports, art, business, special military operations, nonprofits, divinity, medicine, and many others have taught us this: some of the most powerful performance determinants have to do with an individual’s character as defined by virtue, regardless of pure talent. While people can succeed without practicing virtue, their performance is ultimately less than optimal. More importantly in team environments, their impact on others will detract rather than enhance a high-performing team culture. The research and tools detailed in this book unite people of every age, background, discipline, and identity through a shared passion to become better humans and better performers.”

“The title of this book says it all. Better humans do drive better and more sustained results. Most of us want to believe this, but what does it mean and is it true? You will find the convincing answers in the pages of this book. The concept of virtue is more important now than it ever has been. The world is skeptical, and the nobility of business is under heavy fire. There is a yearning for examples of people in all walks of life who are achieving results with an uncompromising commitment to a life of virtue. This book is the most comprehensive and compelling book I have read that ties virtue to performance.”

“Baldwin Wallace University students and athletes rely on Better Humans Better Performance to practice virtue. As students get better at who they are, they become better teammates and better athletes. By developing character strengths, students' de-risk the hiring decision for employers and become productive employees. In the process, both athletes and students become better people.”

“A refreshingly practical book on how it’s possible to achieve success by cultivating virtues. The authors show how being a good person can actually make you into a better performer.”

It was a true pleasure to welcome Dr. Peter Rea as the guest speaker at the Department Chairs Council meeting. His presentation was not only engaging and informative—it was genuinely inspiring.   Dr. Rea’s insights on virtue and character in leadership were especially impactful, offering a timely and meaningful lens through which to view the challenges and opportunities facing our organization. His thoughtful selection of advance readings laid a strong foundation for the discussion and encouraged deeper reflection among attendees.   He struck the perfect balance—grounding his message in research while sharing relevant, real-world examples from a wide range of fields. His blend of wisdom, humility, and humor left a lasting impression on everyone in the room.   We are deeply grateful for Dr. Rea’s time, his expertise, and his commitment to helping us grow—both personally and professionally.