The goal is clear. The strategy is set. The team is in place. By Friday, it's gone…
The Heartbeat is a demanding meeting structure that uses public commitments and social pressure to close the gap between strategy and execution. Talkers self-select out. Your best people rise to the top. Your goals get accomplished.
For CEOs interested in greatness, it's a superpower.
Download The Heartbeat Guide
What People Are Staying
“Before engaging Adam, we were stuck and spinning. His approach allowed us to create a transformational opportunity for the company."
— Brian Solano, CEO and Board Member
"What sets Adam apart is his skill in sparking creativity, leading to fresh ideas and solutions that I hadn't considered before."
— Andreas Deptolla, Chief Technology Officer at Atari
About Adam Stack
Adam is a former professional rock climber who competed at the highest levels of the sport and summited some of the world's most dangerous mountains — where fuzzy thinking gets you killed.
CEOs, boards, and athletes engage Adam to achieve their most important goals.
Prior to starting his consulting work and research, Adam was brought in to lead two growth efforts that each resulted in successful business acquisitions.
Goal Research
Adam has spent seven years studying 345 of the world's most audacious goals to uncover why some succeed and most don't. The research includes interviews with leaders like Alan Mulally — the CEO who turned around Ford. What he found explains why yours probably won't work — and what you can do about it.
Goal Strategy Session
A Great Project is the playbook. It shows you how to pick the right goal, choose the right people, and overcome the problems that kill most BHAGs. Adam works with CEOs to build that playbook for their organization.
Heartbeat Training
If a Great Project is how you get there, the Heartbeat is the gas pedal. It uses social pressure and public commitments to let the best people surface and build a culture of achievement. Adam trains leadership teams to run the Heartbeat themselves.
“Adam subscribes to the philosophy that you pick a big goal and structure your life to make it happen. At this, Stack is relentless.”
— Chris Weidner, Sports Commentator and Journalist
The Climbs
I'm no longer at the peak of the climbing world — it's not an old man's game. I wish it was, but it's not. So it goes. I still use climbing as a laboratory for testing new goal frameworks because nothing clarifies your thinking like exposure.
The Grand Teton Traverse, Jackson Hole, Wyoming, 17 hours — Partner: Tommy Caldwell
Cirque of the Towers, Wind River, Wyoming, 16 hours — Partner: Tim Kemple 
El Capitan and Half Dome, Yosemite, California 20 hours — Partner: Tommy Caldwell
Special Thanks
Everyone working on big goal needs a friend who sets a high bar to shoot for.
Special thanks to Jim Collins, my climbing partner and author of Good to Great. When lost in my mountain of research, his choice words and questions helped me see clearly.