The Pathway to Peak Performance Podcast
Welcome to Pathway to Peak Performance
Hosted by Jock Putney, this channel is dedicated to the pursuit of excellence—mental, physical, emotional, and professional.
Each episode dives deep into the real stories of high achievers from all walks of life: elite athletes, tactical operators, innovators, creators, and leaders who have pushed themselves to the edge and beyond. This isn’t about hype. It’s about mindset, discipline, failure, growth, and the relentless pursuit of getting better.
If you’re driven to elevate your performance—whether that’s in the gym, in your work, or in your personal life—you’re in the right place.
🎯 Real people.
🔥 Real stories.
💡 Real tools to help you perform at your highest level.
Subscribe and start your own journey toward peak performance.
The Pathway to Peak Performance Podcast
Searching For The Cure To Cancer, Vaccines, & Pandemics: Phillip Norris' Pathway to Peak Performance
What can four decades of fighting infectious diseases teach us about leadership, pandemics, human performance, and the future of medicine?
In this episode of The Pathway to Peak Performance, Jock Putney sits down with Dr. Phillip Norris—infectious disease physician, immunologist, and senior leader at one of the largest nonprofit blood banks in the U.S.—for a rare inside look at the intersection of science, medicine, courage, and humility.
Dr. Norris shares his unconventional path from engineering at UC Berkeley to medical training at Columbia and Duke, followed by groundbreaking research at Harvard and Massachusetts General Hospital. His career spans some of the most defining moments in modern infectious disease:
• The early AIDS epidemic
• Game-changing protease inhibitor therapies
• SARS-1
• COVID-19
• The evolution of vaccines, immunity, and public health
This episode cuts through headlines and misinformation, tackling the questions people really want answers to:
• Is another global pandemic inevitable?
• What does the science actually say about blood transfusions from vaccinated donors?
• How do vaccines, infections, and immunity shape long-term health?
• Why do humility and mentorship matter more than raw intelligence in elite medical careers?
Dr. Norris also reveals his latest work in cancer immunotherapy, including an emerging antibody designed to activate the immune system against tumors—along with the real challenges of securing funding for transformative research.
Beyond medicine, this conversation explores burnout, coaching, resilience, parenting, flow states, and what it takes to rediscover purpose after setbacks. Dr. Norris shares candid stories about leadership, mistakes, and the mentors who shaped him—reminding listeners that peak performance isn’t linear; it’s earned.
This episode supports the Vitalant Foundation, advancing critical work in transfusion medicine, immunology, and cancer research.
Donate here → https://www.vitalant.org/support-us/vitalant-foundation
Follow Jock on Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/jfp_cubed/
SEO-Optimized Episode Highlights
• The truth about future pandemics
• How blood banks evaluate vaccine safety
• What immunity really means (and what people get wrong)
• Inside the early days of HIV/AIDS—and how medicine changed forever
• The promise of cancer immunotherapy
• Leadership lessons from Harvard, Duke, and global health systems
• Why humility is the real superpower in high-performance careers
• How elite clinicians manage time, burnout, and purpose