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Writer's pictureMatthew Cossens

Are You A Cleaner? (Quick Reflections From Relentless)



Recently the Aurec Team in VIC and I worked through Relentless by Tim Grover as part of our book club.


For those who don’t know who Tim Grover is, he is the legendary coach that trained Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant and Dwayne Wade among many others.



The book comes from his first hand knowledge working with elite athletes and in particular on the mindset that it takes to go from good (cooler) to great (closer) to unstoppable (cleaner).


What is a Cooler, Closer and Cleaner?


Cooler - A Cooler is careful; he waits to be told what to do, watches to see what everyone else is doing, and then follows the leader. He’s a mediator, not a decision-maker; he’s not taking sides unless he’s forced to. He can handle a certain amount of pressure when things are going well, but when things get too intense, he kicks the problem over to someone else. He can make a huge play, but he’s not ultimately responsible for the outcome. He’s the setup guy, keeping things cool until the Closer or Cleaner can take over.”


Closer - A Closer can handle a lot of pressure; he’ll get the job done if you put him in the right situation and tell him exactly what you need him to do. He’ll study all sorts of scenarios so he can anticipate what might happen, but he’s uncomfortable when faced with something unexpected. He seeks attention and credit, and he’s very aware of what everyone else is doing and what others think of him. He loves the rewards and perks associated with his fame and would choose financial security over winning or success.”


Cleaner You’ll need to read the book to fully grasp the cleaner end to end but the cleaner’s attitude can be summed up in three words “I Own This. He walks in with confidence and leaves with results. A cleaner has the guts and the vision to steer everything to his advantage…..These are the most driven individuals you will ever know, with an unmatched genius for what they do: they don’t just perform a job, they reinvent it.


He describes cleaners as having the Relentless 13. You don’t have to identify with them all, all of the time. Some may intrigue you, some might repel you but all will define your ability to be relentless.


They are not numbered as they are equally important as seen below.


The Relentless 13


1) You keep pushing yourself harder when everyone else has had enough.



1) You get into the Zone, you shut out everything else, and control the uncontrollable.


1) You know exactly who you are.





1) You have a dark side that refuses to be taught to be good.


1) You’re not intimidated by pressure, you thrive on it.




1) When everyone is hitting the “In Case of Emergency” button, they’re all looking for you.




1) You don’t compete with anyone, you find your opponent’s weakness and you attack.


1) You make decisions, not suggestions; you know the answer while everyone else is still asking questions.




1) You don’t have to love the work, but you’re addicted to the results.





1) You’d rather be feared than liked.


1) You trust very few people, and those you trust better never let you down.




1) You don’t recognize failure you know there’s more than one way to get what you want.


1) You don’t celebrate your achievement because you always want more.




And one final thought from Tim




It was a read I thoroughly enjoyed as I felt it spoke to many parts of my DNA and also framed a relentless drive as not only ‘OK’ but something to strive towards.


The only negatives I felt from the book was that it was hyper masculine. This could be down to Tim’s personal experience but there are no references to any female athletes (perhaps he didn’t train any?) nor did he reference businesswoman, actresses that he would categorise as cleaners. In my personal opinion this does detract somewhat from the book as I feel there are many examples he could have cited.


The only other negative is that the book does a great job of categorising what makes a cooler, closer and cleaner but doesn’t give any specific advice or goals to move from good to great to unstoppable. Some takeaways or action items could have taken this to the next level.


All in all though it is quality read and will challenge the way you think and look at where you are at and what you really want in life, business and/or any other goals you chase after.





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