Why Your Annual Physical Isn’t Enough as a CEO and Entrepreneur
For most executives, the annual physical is treated like a checkbox on the calendar. You schedule it, spend an hour or two getting your vitals checked, maybe go through some routine bloodwork, and leave with a piece of paper that says you’re “fine.”
But here’s the truth: “fine” isn’t the same as optimal, and when you’re running a company, leading a team, or carrying the weight of high-stakes decisions, “fine” isn’t good enough.
The traditional annual physical exam was never designed to meet the unique demands of CEOs and entrepreneurs. It’s built for the general population. It’s about detecting disease, not building capacity.
And that’s a problem because the reality of modern leadership is that your health isn’t just a private matter. It’s directly tied to your performance, your decision-making, and the long-term value you create.
The question you should be asking isn’t, “Am I healthy enough to avoid disease?” but rather, “Am I optimized to perform at my best consistently?”
That’s where Executive Health programs come in. They don’t just give you a one-time snapshot. They provide a comprehensive roadmap: one that looks deeper, wider, and further ahead than any traditional physical roadmap ever could.
Key Differences Every CEO Should Know
Depth vs. Snapshot
Annual physicals offer a surface-level view. Executive Health programs dig deeper with advanced diagnostics, imaging, genetic testing, and predictive assessments.Generalist vs. Specialized Team
Traditional physicals leave you with generic advice. Executive Health surrounds you with a multidisciplinary “pit crew” covering performance, nutrition, sleep, and psychology.Maintenance vs. Optimization
Annual check-ups are about surviving. Executive Health is about thriving, sustaining clarity, energy, and presence over decades, not just passing a test once a year.
Why This Matters for Leaders
Feeling “fine” isn’t enough. Warning signs often don’t appear until it’s too late, and “normal” lab results rarely reflect the demands of leading at the highest level. For CEOs and entrepreneurs, neglecting health isn’t just a personal risk; it’s a business liability.
At Executive Health, we specialize in helping leaders go beyond average. Think of it like upgrading from a basic annual budget report to a full CFO-level financial dashboard. The stakes are too high to rely on outdated tools. Your health is your billion-dollar asset, and it deserves to be managed with the same precision you bring to your business.
If this resonates, I invite you to watch the video below for a deeper dive into how Executive Health compares to a traditional annual physical, and why the distinction could be one of the most important investments you make this year.
Transcript (May Not Be Exact)
(0:00) Are traditional annual physicals enough to keep a CEO at the top of their game? Or (0:07) is there a better way to approach health when the stakes are this high? (0:14) Welcome, I'm Julian Hayes, the second founder of Executive Health. We help entrepreneurs, (0:19) CEOs, and other A-level leaders optimize their billion-dollar asset so they can thrive in (0:25) business, lead in their communities, and be more present with their families. And for most leaders, (0:31) the annual physical is treated like a box to check once a year.
And the problem is, (0:37) what works for the general population isn't designed for the demands of a CEO, of a founder, (0:43) or any sort of high-level leader. You're making million-dollar decisions. For some, (0:50) it's even billion-dollar decisions.
You're operating in a high-stress environment. You're (0:54) often at times, unfortunately, sacrificing your health in the process of doing all these things. (0:59) So, a missed warning sign or a hidden blind spot, it's not just affecting you.
It's creating actual (1:08) ripples throughout your company, throughout your family, throughout your future. And so, (1:12) that's why this comparison matters. It's why this comparison needs to be differentiated.
It (1:20) needs to be understood. And I'm going to do this by sharing three key differences. (1:26) And the first one is depth versus snapshot.
So, a traditional physical gives you a snapshot. (1:36) You're getting basic labs. You're getting vitals.
And maybe a quick conversation with your doctor. (1:43) And it's designed to catch disease once it's already there, once it's already manifested. (1:49) Now, on the other hand, when you're thinking about like an executive health physical, (1:56) this goes far deeper.
You're talking advanced diagnostics. You're talking full-body imaging. (2:02) You're talking cardiovascular scans, genetic and epigenetic testing, VO2 max testing, (2:08) and even cutting-edge measures, such as deuterium levels testing and biological age testing, (2:15) which gets even granular when you start to be organ-specific with your biological age testing.
(2:21) And so, instead of a snapshot, you're getting a 360-degree dashboard of your health today, (2:27) and more importantly, where it's trending tomorrow. And my second point here that I (2:34) want you to keep in mind is the notion of a generalist versus a Formula One pit crew. (2:40) A typical physical, it ends with a sheet of paper and some generic advice probably.
Eat better. Keep (2:47) your cholesterol down. Exercise more.
Manage stress. But there's no system. There's no follow-up.
(2:55) There's no accountability. On the contrary, when you're thinking about something a little more (3:01) evolved, you're not left with vague instructions. You're backed by a multidisciplinary team.
(3:07) And think of this as having your own Formula One pit crew. Every angle is covered. There's a (3:14) medicine side.
There's a performance side. There's a nutrition. There's a fitness.
There's a sleep. (3:17) There's a psychology. Everything's integrated into your lifestyle as a leader, not a textbook (3:23) version of health, not a one-size-fits-all solution that tends to put everyone in a centralized (3:34) area.
And in an essence, this approach is a little more decentralized. (3:39) Now, the third idea is maintenance versus optimization. And so you have a regular (3:48) physical, and this is built around your maintenance.
You're checking for disease. (3:53) It's keeping you, quote-unquote, average. You're within range of whatever thing they give out in (3:59) your report.
But you're a CEO. You're a founder. You're a high-level, A-level leader.
(4:07) You don't operate on average. And you have no average makes you sick at your stomach. (4:14) And so the other side of the coin, when you leave this paradigm and go to the other paradigm, (4:20) it's about optimization.
It's about sovereignty. It's about building capacity to the best of your (4:28) ability, to the highest of your abilities, physical, mental, emotional, and even spiritual, (4:33) and taking care of this level of capacity so you can lead at your highest level, (4:38) not just today, not just tomorrow, but for decades. And so this isn't just about surviving (4:46) in your role.
This isn't just about surviving as you continually build your company up. (4:50) This is about sustaining clarity. This is about sustaining your energy.
This is about (4:56) your presence long-term. This is about taking care and optimizing your time and not wasting it. (5:05) Now, you might be thinking, okay, this may seem like an overkill.
You know, I feel fine. My (5:11) physical that I my regular physical that I get every year hasn't raised any flags. I'm checking (5:16) all the boxes.
But here's the truth with that. Feeling fine isn't the same as performing at your (5:23) best. Feeling fine isn't the same as being optimal.
So most warning signs are not going (5:29) to show up on a basic physical on a basic test until it's actually too late. And even if your (5:35) labs look normal, that doesn't mean that they're optimal for the demands of your role that you're (5:41) doing. So I want you to think of it like running your company off of outdated data.
Now, sure, (5:46) you can survive. But you'll miss opportunities. You'll expose yourself to risk.
And eventually, (5:52) unfortunately, at that, you'll probably fall behind. And the same goes for your health. (5:58) So the bottom line is this.
A traditional physical, these are fine if your goal is to avoid (6:03) illness to be average and just have a basic baseline level of operating. But if you're a CEO, (6:11) you're a founder, you're an A-level leader whose health is directly tied to the performance, (6:15) the legacy, and leadership, then you're going to need more. And so if that resonates, consider (6:21) taking a deeper look at how your health is managed.
And that's exactly what we specialize (6:26) at Executive Health, building leaders who don't just maintain, but they optimize. Most importantly, (6:33) they operate with sovereignty, full sovereignty of that. And so if you'd like to explore what (6:38) this looks like, I invite you to schedule a private Executive Health diagnostic call.
(6:44) It's a simple conversation to see if working together makes sense. And if that sounds good, (6:49) click the link below. And until next time, stay awesome, be limitless, (6:53) and optimize today so you can lead tomorrow.
Peace.
