The 5 States of Success
Success is not a mystery. It is five measurable states your clients can learn.
The 5 States of Success gives you Brendan Foley's bestselling framework as a set of ready-to-deploy assessments. Measure the Clarity, Connection, Certainty, Vitality and Spirit of one leader, a whole team, or a full 360, then hand your client a scored profile with built-in coaching advice. The framework grew out of two decades of coaching thousands of professionals at organizations like Diageo, AIB, Danone, Deloitte and HSBC. You bring the relationship and the strategy; The 5 States gives you the evidence.
Coaches and consultants working on leadership, performance and team development
The 5 States of Success by Brendan Foley
Personal Report, Team Report, 360 Report
English (more on demand)
Required to deploy with clients
Amazon UK #1 bestselling book; 20+ years of coaching practice
The 5 States of Success
Brendan Foley defines a state as a mindset and a skillset that together create a powerful quality. That definition matters: unlike a personality type, a state can be measured, coached and grown. Every 5 States report scores against the same five, so whether you start with one leader, a team, or a full 360, your client gets a shared language and a comparable picture of what drives their success and what holds it back.
Clarity
Creates insight
Communicating with accuracy and planning ahead. High clarity means beginning with the end in mind and bringing structure to everything.
Connection
Creates empathy
The quality of relationships and teamwork. High connection builds trust with colleagues, customers and stakeholders.
Certainty
Creates belief
Inner confidence and the tenacity to keep going when knocked back. Empowering beliefs drive behavior; obstacles get overcome.
Vitality
Creates action
Mental, emotional, physical and spiritual wellbeing. High vitality means sustained energy to deliver results without burning out.
Spirit
Creates purpose
A sense of meaning, possibility and leadership regardless of title. High spirit motivates others and inspires what is possible.
Choose the right 5 States report
Same five states, three lenses. Start with a single leader, combine profiles into one picture of a team, or run a full 360. Many engagements use more than one, often a Personal Report to open, then a Team or 360 Report to go deeper.
Individual
The 5 States Personal Report
A private profile for one leader. They complete a short questionnaire and receive scored results across all five states, per-state analysis, and tailored coaching advice built around the OWA (Outcome - Why - Action) model.
Partner rate on request · per report
View details →Team
The 5 States Team Report
One combined picture of a whole team. Individual profiles roll up into a team-level view of the five states, revealing the wider dynamics at play: where the group is strong, where it leaks energy, and what to work on together.
Partner rate on request · per team
View details →360 feedback
The 5 States 360 Report
A full-circle view of one leader. Their self-rating is compared with how the people around them experience the same five states, revealing blind spots, hidden strengths, and where perception gaps sit.
Partner rate on request · per subject
View details →
Brendan Foley
Brendan Foley is the creator of The 5 States of Success framework and Managing Director of Seachange Now, a leadership development consultancy based in Ireland. He is an executive coach and leadership trainer who helps people and businesses build meaningful success: the kind that makes you happy, healthy and wealthy at the same time.
His book The 5 States of Success (Mercier Press, 2010) became a #1 bestseller on Amazon UK and grew out of two decades of direct coaching with thousands of individuals and hundreds of teams. Brendan's work is built on a core belief: success is not a mystery, but a set of learnable states that any person or team can develop.
Framework - Creator of The 5 States of Success: Clarity, Connection, Certainty, Vitality, Spirit
Author - The 5 States of Success, Amazon UK #1 bestseller (Mercier Press, 2010)
Consultancy - Managing Director, Seachange Now: Inspire. Lead. Transform.
Reach - Trusted by Diageo, AIB, Danone, Deloitte, HSBC, Grant Thornton and more
Success that is measurable, not one-dimensional
Most high performers do not fail from lack of ambition. They fail because one depleted state quietly undermines the other four: the brilliant strategist with no energy left, the connector who avoids hard decisions, the driver who has stopped inspiring anyone. Because each state reinforces the others, lifting the weakest one moves everything. That is a coaching conversation worth having, and a number worth tracking.
When the five states are aligned, your client gains
- Clear goals and structured execution
- Stronger relationships and real collaboration
- Confidence that survives setbacks
- Sustained energy and a sense of purpose that carries others
When a state is depleted, they suffer
- Busy work without direction or focus
- Friction, silos and low trust around them
- Hesitation, self-doubt and avoided decisions
- Fatigue, disengagement and success that does not feel like it
“
Fantastic! This is unique! I've never come across anything like this before. Doesn't pigeon hole you and offers a much wider view of development.
Programme participant
Diageo
“
[EDIT: coach/consultant quote about using the 5 States in their engagements. A concrete outcome beats generic praise. Confirm with Brendan/Seachange Now.]
[EDIT: Full name]
[EDIT: Role, Company]
“
[EDIT: HR leader or second client quote, ideally with a number or a recognition moment. Confirm with Brendan/Seachange Now.]
[EDIT: Full name]
[EDIT: Role, Company]
Built so you can deliver value and earn your margin
Each 5 States report is priced as a partner rate, leaving clear room between what you pay Esperto and what you charge your client. No subscriptions, no platform lock-in. Rates depend on volume and scope, so we share them on a discovery call.
Personal Report
Contact us
per report
One leader's scored profile across the five states, with per-state analysis and tailored coaching advice built on the OWA model.
See the Personal Report →360 Report
Contact us
per subject
A full-circle view of one leader: their self-rating compared with how manager, peers and reports experience the same five states.
See the 360 Report →Team Report
Contact us
per team
One combined picture of the five states across a whole team, revealing the group dynamics behind its results.
See the Team Report →Certification is required. To deploy The 5 States reports with your clients you complete a half-day accreditation facilitated by Brendan Foley's team, plus an annual licence that keeps you supported and includes complimentary profiles. We walk you through the path and the numbers on a discovery call.
Frequently asked questions
What is The 5 States of Success?
The 5 States of Success is Brendan Foley's framework for meaningful success, built on five measurable states: Clarity, Connection, Certainty, Vitality and Spirit. Within the Esperto toolkit it comes as three deployable reports, a Personal Report, a Team Report and a 360 Report, that let you put a number on each state and coach it deliberately.
Which report should I start with?
Start with the Personal Report to open a coaching relationship with one leader, the 360 when you want outside perspective and blind spots, or the Team Report when the work is about a group. Many coaches combine them, for example Personal Reports for every team member first, then the Team Report to surface the shared dynamics.
How is this different from a personality test?
A personality type describes what someone is like; a state describes what someone can grow. Brendan defines each state as a mindset plus a skillset, which means every score in the report points to something coachable. Clients consistently say it does not pigeonhole them, it shows them where to move next.
In which languages are the reports available?
English at the moment. Additional languages can usually be arranged on demand, so if you need another language for a client, ask and we will check what is possible. [EDIT: confirm available languages with Seachange Now before publishing.]
Do I need to be certified to deploy The 5 States?
Yes. You complete a half-day accreditation facilitated by Brendan Foley's team at Seachange Now, which equips you to interpret and debrief the reports well, plus an annual licence that includes complimentary profiles. We explain the path on a discovery call.
How is privacy handled?
Individual responses are handled confidentially and team results are reported at group level, so people can answer freely. [EDIT: confirm hosting region, GDPR status and retention policy with Seachange Now before publishing.]
How does pricing and my margin work?
You pay a partner rate per report and charge your client what fits the value of your engagement. The difference is your margin. Rates depend on the format and your volume, and are shared on a discovery call. There are no subscriptions or platform fees on top.
Can I combine The 5 States with other Esperto assessments?
Yes. The 5 States pairs naturally with other tools in the Esperto toolkit, for example an organizational culture survey for the wider system, a leadership archetype assessment for role fit, or the Enneagram for personality depth underneath the five states. We can suggest combinations on a call.
Who created The 5 States of Success?
Brendan Foley, executive coach and bestselling author, developed The 5 States of Success over two decades of coaching thousands of professionals at organizations like Diageo, AIB, Danone, Deloitte and HSBC. Through Esperto, coaches deploy his framework as personal, team and 360 assessments.
Let's talk about how The 5 States fits your practice.
A short discovery call is the fastest way to know whether The 5 States is right for your next engagement. We will ask how you work with your clients, where individual and team development sit in your offering, and which format fits best. Then we will be honest about whether The 5 States is the match, or whether something else in the Esperto toolkit fits better.