Cathy Salit

Cathy Salit began her career as an upstart and risk-taker at the age of 13, when she dropped out of eighth grade and started an alternative school in an abandoned storefront in New York City. This unusual endeavor put Cathy on an uncharted life path, and she has dedicated her life to creating educational environments that challenge the “way things are” and offer innovative, high-impact learning and development experiences.

When she isn’t speaking or coaching executives, Cathy leads Performance of a Lifetime (POAL), an Inc. 5000 Fastest-Growing Company that helps leaders, teams, and organizations close the gap between the status quo and their desired future by focusing on the human side of strategy. POAL’s team of coaches and human development experts leverage their proprietary method, The Becoming Principle™, to engage leaders and companies in creating and acting on new and uncharted possibilities. As CEO, Cathy works with leaders and teams at companies such as American Express, Nike, Coca Cola, Rolls Royce, The Johns Hopkins Hospital and the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Cathy is the author of Performance Breakthrough: A Radical Approach to Success at Work (Hachette Books), which has been called a “must read” (Susan Cain), “required reading” (Tor Myhren), and an “exhilarating book” (Mary Catherine Bateson). Cathy and her work have been featured in Forbes, Inc., Fast Company, Wired, and the Wall Street Journal. She is also an artistic associate at the award-winning Castillo Theatre in New York City, where she performs regularly with the musical improv comedy troupe the Proverbial Loons. Less frequently, she sings jazz and R&B on any stage she can find…or create.