The Bolshoi Method: What Ballet Dancers Know About Perfecting Skills That Most CEOs Don’t

Let me ask you something…

How fast do you think your team can really change?

Because AI isn’t creeping into business anymore.

It’s already here…

• More than 90% of companies started using AI tools last year

• Less than 50% actually trained their people to use them 🧐

Right now, AI is moving faster than your business can keep up with on paper.

• Tools update weekly

• Computer power doubles in months

• What felt advanced in spring is outdated by autumn

But inside most companies, training still looks like it’s 1995.

• One-off workshops

• Slide decks no one remembers

• Change that never sticks

If you want to stay ahead, you need teams who can learn faster than the market shifts.

That’s why the question isn’t “Will my team learn AI?”

The real question is “How fast can they learn anything?”

And there’s a number that keeps coming up: eight weeks.

In this email, I’ll show you exactly how the best in the world do it and how you can apply the same tactics inside your company.

The 8-Week Rule

There’s a number that shows up again and again when you study transformation: Eight weeks.

The Bolshoi Ballet (the toughest dance company in the world) runs eight-week clinics where dancers don’t just refine technique, they rewire themselves for world-class performance.

The Navy SEALs put every candidate through an eight-week crucible. In those weeks, you stop being someone who might quit and become someone who never does.

And science proves it too.

At Massachusetts General Hospital, participants meditated 27 minutes a day.

After eight weeks, brain scans showed permanent structural change (check out the full report here).

Focus sharper. Emotions steadier. Habits rewired.

How to Run It Inside Your Business

Here’s a simple blueprint you can copy into your own org:

Weeks 1–2: Exposure

• Show the art of the possible. Demo new tools, invite experts, run “AI 101” style sessions.

• Example: Microsoft gives teams access to sandbox AI environments so they can play without fear of breaking things.

Weeks 3–4: Experimentation

• Small projects. Pick one business workflow and test AI or new processes.

• Example: Airbnb encourages “hack weeks” where cross-functional teams prototype and pitch solutions in just a few days.

Weeks 5–6: Integration

• Move from side projects to daily work. Bake learnings into regular routines.

• Example: Shopify built internal Slack bots for employees to use daily—turning learning into habit, not homework.

Weeks 7–8: Teaching & Ownership

• Have employees present what they’ve learned to peers. Teaching cements knowledge.

• Example: Atlassian runs “ShipIt Days” where teams not only build but showcase results via peer-to-peer learning at scale.

Most CEOs I talk to are worried about AI replacing jobs.

But in reality, AI won’t replace your people.

A competitor with a team that learns faster absolutely will.

The clock’s already ticking.

All you need is 8 weeks.

👋 Alex

MY TOP FINDS OF THE WEEK 🏆

For Your Performance

• Michael Phelps giving a 🐐 pep talk to the Baltimore Ravens (Link)

For Your Team

• Why Zuckerberg doesn’t believe in delegation 🤔 (Link)

For Your Health

• The leading signs of burnout before it happens from Davina McCall’s pod (Link)