Iris Zimmermann
Lead Integrated Mental Health Specialist - Performance Psychology
Achieving sustainable high performance
As a world champion fencer and U.S. Olympian, there were times in my life where the word, “No,” was absent from my vocabulary. Growing up, I took pride in being a shining example of the, ‘grind it out,’ culture, pushing myself and my body to the limits for my sport. My commitment and dedication to fencing was prioritized above anything else in my life. Because of it, I made a national team before I started high school, won a world championship before I could drive, and earned a spot on my first United States Olympic Team in 2000.
Looking back, that, ‘all-or-nothing,’ mindset came at a cost, to me, my family, and my relationship with the sport I love. Working for demanding coaches who expected me to constantly perform at a high level was the story of my athletic career, and the pressure to perform accompanied me everywhere I went. I feel as though an environment like that in the short term can be navigated successfully, but living in that space year after year eventually took its toll on my mind, body, and spirit. Constant training meant missing time with my friends and loved ones. While that approach seemed fine at the time – it got me to where I wanted to be – it wasn’t until later in my professional career that I learned how to achieve sustainable high performance in a healthy way. It took time to learn that pushing through feelings of burnout wasn’t the only option for me.
Prior to joining Deloitte, I worked at a start-up as the VP of Coaching and Coach Operations, and I was a Certified Performance coach. As a professional coach, my clients were highly driven professionals, such as CEOs and physicians, and I could relate to the type of high-pressure environments where performance and outcomes seem to determine worth. I leveraged my hard-earned learning around healthy high performance to help my clients be more intentional in their behaviors and decisions to foster sustainable success and growth for themselves and the teams they were leading. My clients often found that their ways of working were outdated and needed to better match their current needs, which often meant prioritizing recovery, not, “going it alone,” leaning into other sources of worth, and better resourcing themselves in a more holistic way.
Dr. Adam Naylor, the Deloitte Performance Psychology Leader, was my mentor and started me on my professional coaching journey, and it was through him that I learned about the position on the newly created Integrated Mental Health Services (IMHS) team. It had been a long time since I felt like I was a part of a team, decades since my time competing in the Olympic Games in 2000, but I really feel like I am on a team again. In my role in IMHS as a Lead Specialist for the Performance Psychology Division, I am part of a team and culture interested in helping Deloitte’s leaders elevate their psychological health in science backed and innovative ways. I am excited to bring my knowledge and skillsets to Deloitte and a community that I feel cares about people’s ability to thrive mentally and most importantly, thrive together.
"It wasn’t until later in my professional career that I learned how to achieve sustainable high performance in a healthy way."
Iris Zimmermann (She/Her) - Lead Integrated Mental Health Specialist - Performance Psychology
There’s more to Team USA and the Games than sport itself
Advance and perform: It applies as much to athletes as business itself. What makes a successful athlete or sports organization often goes beyond performance on the field of play and transcends the game they are known for. As a trusted advisor of LA28 and the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC), Deloitte is helping these organizations so they can advance and perform. As a proud sponsor of Team USA, we celebrate that there’s so much more to winning than just on-field performance.
