EP78: Knowing How to Perform Better with Steven Groom
Episode Summary
In this episode of The Meaningful Marketing Podcast, Chantal Gerardy sits down with breathwork and performance specialist Steven Groom from Elite Breath Training to explore why business success isn’t just about having the right strategy. It’s about the state you bring to implementing it.
Drawing from his own journey through chronic stress and illness, Steven explains how breath training and nervous system regulation can improve focus, confidence, recovery, decision-making and performance. Together, Chantal and Steven discuss why so many business owners know what they should be doing but struggle to take consistent action, and how learning to regulate your nervous system can transform not only your marketing but your leadership and overall business performance.
This episode is ideal for business owners, CEOs, marketing managers, sales leaders and anyone wanting to perform at a higher level without relying on constant hustle. Rather than simply working harder, this conversation explores how creating calm, clarity and confidence leads to better business outcomes.
Key Takeaways
- Your business performance is directly influenced by your emotional and physiological state.
- Stress and overwhelm reduce creativity, focus and quality decision-making.
- Breath training is one of the fastest ways to regulate your nervous system.
- Consistent nervous system regulation helps improve leadership and communication.
- Finding a clear niche allows you to become known for one area before naturally expanding.
- Marketing works best when it educates, builds trust and overcomes objections.
- Business owners often wait until burnout before seeking support, when prevention is far more effective.
- Small breathing practices throughout the day can significantly improve productivity and resilience.
- Success comes from combining strategy with a regulated state, not from constant hustle.
- Building an inner belief that things will work out creates more consistent action and better long-term performance.
Nervous System Regulation Improves Business Performance with Steven Groom
Many business owners believe they need another marketing strategy, a better sales process or a new business system.
But according to Chantal Gerardy, that’s rarely the real issue.
After working with hundreds of businesses, she has observed a common pattern. People often know exactly what they should be doing. They have the strategy, the tools and the knowledge. Yet they still struggle to implement consistently because they’re operating from stress, pressure and overwhelm.
Steven Groom believes that improving business performance starts by improving your internal state.
Rather than simply pushing harder, he teaches people how to regulate their breathing, calm their nervous system and perform at their best.
As Steven explains, your breath is something you take everywhere with you. Learning how to use it intentionally allows you to stay calmer, think more clearly and respond rather than react.
Steven Groom on Breath Training and Peak Performance
Steven’s journey into breathwork began after experiencing recurring shingles and recognising that stress was affecting his health.
After discovering breathwork, cold exposure and eventually Oxygen Advantage training, he realised breathing was about much more than relaxation.
Today he works with athletes, particularly boxers, helping them improve recovery, endurance and performance through better breathing techniques.
Instead of relying purely on determination, Steven teaches athletes to improve their carbon dioxide tolerance, allowing oxygen to move more efficiently through the body. This improves recovery between rounds, increases endurance and helps athletes remain calm under pressure.
While his focus is elite performance, the same principles apply to business owners navigating stressful workdays.
Chantal Gerardy and Steven Groom on Why State Matters More Than Strategy Alone
One of the strongest themes throughout the conversation is that strategy only works when you’re capable of implementing it.
Chantal shares a principle she regularly teaches through her business coaching:
State + Strategy = Success
Without emotional regulation, even the best business strategy falls apart.
Stress impacts:
- Decision-making
- Creativity
- Leadership
- Communication
- Marketing consistency
- Team relationships
Rather than constantly reacting to emails, client issues or marketing challenges, regulated business owners can pause, think clearly and respond with intention.
Steven explains that breathwork provides one of the fastest ways to shift from fight-or-flight into a calmer, more productive state by influencing the diaphragm and vagus nerve.
Steven Groom Explains Why Breath Training Builds Better Leaders
The conversation moves beyond athletic performance into everyday business leadership.
Many leaders unknowingly bring stress into meetings, conversations and decision-making.
When operating in survival mode, it’s difficult to:
- Delegate effectively
- Think strategically
- Inspire your team
- Communicate clearly
- Create strong marketing
Steven encourages people to build small breathing practices into their day instead of waiting until they’re overwhelmed.
Whether it’s taking ten minutes before arriving home after work or slowing your breathing before an important meeting, these simple habits help reset your nervous system and improve your performance throughout the day.
Rather than eliminating stress entirely, breath training changes how you respond to it.
Chantal Gerardy on Marketing Performance Starts with Personal Performance
As a marketing strategist, Chantal highlights that many business owners mistakenly blame their marketing when the deeper issue is burnout.
Marketing requires creativity, consistency and clear communication.
When leaders are overwhelmed, they often:
- Delay creating content.
- Make reactive business decisions.
- Constantly change direction.
- Micromanage their teams.
- Lose confidence.
She also discusses the fears many business owners carry around visibility, including worrying about criticism, judgement or not being good enough.
Rather than allowing these fears to control behaviour, Chantal encourages practical exercises that help people release emotional tension so they can show up more confidently.
The goal isn’t simply better marketing.
It’s becoming the kind of business owner capable of executing your marketing consistently.
Why This Matters for Business Owners
Many entrepreneurs believe they need more hours, more motivation or another business strategy.
This episode suggests something different.
Your nervous system influences almost every business decision you make.
When you learn to regulate your breathing, improve your focus and create an internal sense of calm, you naturally make better decisions, communicate more effectively and market your business with greater confidence.
Success isn’t always about working harder.
Sometimes it’s about performing better.
That shift can transform not only your business but your health, relationships and quality of life.
Listen to the Full Episode
If you’ve ever felt like you know exactly what you should be doing in your business but struggle to consistently follow through, this conversation offers a refreshing perspective.
Chantal Gerardy and Steven Groom explore the powerful connection between nervous system regulation, leadership, marketing and sustainable business growth.
You’ll come away with practical breathing techniques, a new understanding of performance and simple ways to bring more calm, clarity and confidence into your everyday work.