so, for April you can only be judged on one thing... your colleagues will shape their view of you based around this one thing... your managers and leaders will identify your value to the business based upon this same one thing... people outside of the business will make their judgements of you on just this one factor... and most importantly, you will draw all of your confidence from this one, critical element of performance.
So, what is that one element of performance for you? What key variable do you want to focus 100% on? When all of your performance boils down to just one thing, how good can you make that quality? What can you do each day to become a little better at the crucial factor? Who can you get advice from that will help you raise your game? What questions will you ask of yourself and of your colleagues to make sure you're constantly delivering the best possible performance?
Choose carefully and see what you can learn about yourself by making your performance a very pure focus.
Showing posts with label High Performance. Show all posts
Showing posts with label High Performance. Show all posts
31 March 2009
22 February 2009
If you had a coach...
and we mean a coach like the athletes we work with. With such a coach, they would be observing your performances and preparation and giving you feedback both during and after your moments of engagement. They'd be reinforcing good stuff, pointing out things to check, highlighting problems to work on and generally being supportive.
So... if you had one of these coaches with you throughout your working day, what would you want them to focus on? How would you make sure you benefited from having someone there to be your constant set of performance eyes and ears? It's worth spending a few minutes thinking this through and then working out how you can get these same benefits by becoming more aware of yourself as a performer and "watching" yourself while you perform and prepare and then asking yourself some tough questions at appropriate moments through the day.
The constant support of someone who's job it is to make you better would be a great thing to have... and in lieu of getting Sir Alex to come in and work for you, you'd better think about whether you're coaching yourself in the best way possible! What are you going to teach yourself today?
So... if you had one of these coaches with you throughout your working day, what would you want them to focus on? How would you make sure you benefited from having someone there to be your constant set of performance eyes and ears? It's worth spending a few minutes thinking this through and then working out how you can get these same benefits by becoming more aware of yourself as a performer and "watching" yourself while you perform and prepare and then asking yourself some tough questions at appropriate moments through the day.
The constant support of someone who's job it is to make you better would be a great thing to have... and in lieu of getting Sir Alex to come in and work for you, you'd better think about whether you're coaching yourself in the best way possible! What are you going to teach yourself today?
18 February 2009
Performance...
We often ask our clients what performance means, before we tell them how we define it. Typically performance gets confused with results and targets and measurement of end points. We often get people to think about performance from the point of view of a performance at the theatre, which people quickly see is a whole series of scenes, acts, people playing their part and the delivery of a performance one step at a time. Importantly, at the theatre, there is a script that underpins the whole performance. This script is a guideline upon which the actors have to bring their own interpretations and emphases. Personalising the script and interpreting it in the right way is a crucial thing for any performance. Even though you know what the end of your performance needs to look like, do you spend the same quality of time becoming equally intimate with your personal script that you need to bring to life to maximise the chances of delivering the result?
Performance is a combination of processes and outcomes and you need to become equally obsessed with both of those elements if you're going to constantly grow and develop in any role you have... want to know more, then just send us an email at hello@planetk2.com.
Performance is a combination of processes and outcomes and you need to become equally obsessed with both of those elements if you're going to constantly grow and develop in any role you have... want to know more, then just send us an email at hello@planetk2.com.
12 February 2009
Recalibrate your risks?
Risks you can afford to take - Risks you can not afford to take - Risks you can afford not to take - Risks you can not afford not to take...
Four different kinds of risks... and do those risks look very different in the current climate? Risks that you could previously afford not to take might now need taking... Risks that you'd previously not think twice about taking - where do they fit into your current plans and performance?
Just like all elite performers, keep checking the fundamentals that underpin your performance, constantly update your understanding of the environment that you're performing in and check that you've got the most up to date and relevant tactics going. Your risk profile is an essential part of this and you'll have got into very strong risk taking habits in recent times when the environment has remained constant - in challenging, novel conditions, you can't rely on habits, you have to consciously and explicitly control the performance you're delivering and cash in on all of your past experiences. The main risk you mustn't take right now is too let your habitual thinking control everything uncensored - consciously competent risk taking is the order of the day!
Four different kinds of risks... and do those risks look very different in the current climate? Risks that you could previously afford not to take might now need taking... Risks that you'd previously not think twice about taking - where do they fit into your current plans and performance?
Just like all elite performers, keep checking the fundamentals that underpin your performance, constantly update your understanding of the environment that you're performing in and check that you've got the most up to date and relevant tactics going. Your risk profile is an essential part of this and you'll have got into very strong risk taking habits in recent times when the environment has remained constant - in challenging, novel conditions, you can't rely on habits, you have to consciously and explicitly control the performance you're delivering and cash in on all of your past experiences. The main risk you mustn't take right now is too let your habitual thinking control everything uncensored - consciously competent risk taking is the order of the day!
An experiment...
We'd like to invite you all to take part in an experiment - and of course let us know any results you might experience.
We talk a lot about the importance of feedback and the fact that elite performers crave feedback and seek it out, rather than waiting for it to "happen" to them once or twice per year in during a performance review. So, instead of perpetuating a less than useful attitude towards feedback we'd like you to see what happens when you do the following:
1. Identify something that you're working on and attempting to improve/change/refine (this might be making a strength stronger, rather than just developing a weakness).
2. Start working on that thing very deliberately.
3. Make some notes around feedback to yourself about what you've noticed as a result of your efforts.
4. After you've been working on it for a while, find a colleague who you would like to hear from and tell them that you've been working on the thing you've been working on and whether they have any feedback specifically about that bit of your performance - don't just spring it on them, give them time to think and reflect and then give them chance to pass any feedback to you that they believe to be useful (you might have to remind them that feedback is simply that and should not be heard as "can you point out to me things that need improving"!)
5. Listen to the feedback they provide you with and compare it to your own thoughts.
6. Decide what you want to do with the feedback.
We'd be interested to see if you find this any more helpful than simply asking "can you give me some feedback on how I've been performing recently?"
Looking forward to seeing your results!
We talk a lot about the importance of feedback and the fact that elite performers crave feedback and seek it out, rather than waiting for it to "happen" to them once or twice per year in during a performance review. So, instead of perpetuating a less than useful attitude towards feedback we'd like you to see what happens when you do the following:
1. Identify something that you're working on and attempting to improve/change/refine (this might be making a strength stronger, rather than just developing a weakness).
2. Start working on that thing very deliberately.
3. Make some notes around feedback to yourself about what you've noticed as a result of your efforts.
4. After you've been working on it for a while, find a colleague who you would like to hear from and tell them that you've been working on the thing you've been working on and whether they have any feedback specifically about that bit of your performance - don't just spring it on them, give them time to think and reflect and then give them chance to pass any feedback to you that they believe to be useful (you might have to remind them that feedback is simply that and should not be heard as "can you point out to me things that need improving"!)
5. Listen to the feedback they provide you with and compare it to your own thoughts.
6. Decide what you want to do with the feedback.
We'd be interested to see if you find this any more helpful than simply asking "can you give me some feedback on how I've been performing recently?"
Looking forward to seeing your results!
6 February 2009
Jim Collins...
is a very clever man, on all sorts of levels. Not only has he authored some very good books , he's also just produced this timely bit of PR, which has got some great stuff in it.
Most interestingly, Collins asserts that; "What we're experiencing now, get used to it! It's life, and it's the normal life. " Which suggests to us that a lot of what we've been blogging about is going to become consistently important, rather than people thinking this stuff might be relevant for them because of the current circumstances.
Another point that is of relevance to us all relates to thinking long term and keeping a much longer end-game in mind and not simply becoming great at reacting (or overreacting) to the here and now.
The final points to highlight are the following:
"The right people don't need to be managed. The moment you feel the need to tightly manage someone, you've made a hiring mistake.
The right people don't think they have a job: They have responsibilities. If I'm a climber, my job is not [just] to belay. My responsibility is that if we get in trouble, I don't let my partner down.
The right people do what they say they will do, which means being really careful about what they say they will do. It's key in difficult times. In difficult environments our results are our responsibility. People who take credit in good times and blame external forces in bad times do not deserve to lead. End of story. "
We've been talking for a long time about ultimate confidence actually being "knowing that you WILL do what you say you are going to do." Nice to have the thoughts backed up from elsewhere. But to us, more than anything, these examples just show an exemplary focus on performance - if the focus is performance, then a lot of this stuff makes even more sense. Have you got the people around you who understand performance and how to perform in order to get the desired results? It's easy to become an expert and identifying results, talking about them and then explaining failure to deliver those results - it's a lot harder to become a performance expert.
Oh, and thanks to one of our performance focused friends within D&B for highlighting the article to us.
Most interestingly, Collins asserts that; "What we're experiencing now, get used to it! It's life, and it's the normal life. " Which suggests to us that a lot of what we've been blogging about is going to become consistently important, rather than people thinking this stuff might be relevant for them because of the current circumstances.
Another point that is of relevance to us all relates to thinking long term and keeping a much longer end-game in mind and not simply becoming great at reacting (or overreacting) to the here and now.
The final points to highlight are the following:
"The right people don't need to be managed. The moment you feel the need to tightly manage someone, you've made a hiring mistake.
The right people don't think they have a job: They have responsibilities. If I'm a climber, my job is not [just] to belay. My responsibility is that if we get in trouble, I don't let my partner down.
The right people do what they say they will do, which means being really careful about what they say they will do. It's key in difficult times. In difficult environments our results are our responsibility. People who take credit in good times and blame external forces in bad times do not deserve to lead. End of story. "
We've been talking for a long time about ultimate confidence actually being "knowing that you WILL do what you say you are going to do." Nice to have the thoughts backed up from elsewhere. But to us, more than anything, these examples just show an exemplary focus on performance - if the focus is performance, then a lot of this stuff makes even more sense. Have you got the people around you who understand performance and how to perform in order to get the desired results? It's easy to become an expert and identifying results, talking about them and then explaining failure to deliver those results - it's a lot harder to become a performance expert.
Oh, and thanks to one of our performance focused friends within D&B for highlighting the article to us.
2 February 2009
Will and Skill
What happens when an irresistible force meets an immovable object? What happens when an immense combination of WILL+SKILL meets and immense combination of SKILL+WILL? You end up with an epic tennis match, again.The lessons from yesterday's Australian tennis Open final could go on and on and the incredible displays of mental toughness pay testament to just what can be achieved psychologically when you have an immense talent base upon which to draw.
For most mortals, tough situations are avoided and the desire to pitch oneself against the toughest opponents looked at with dread - not so for Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. These two players seem to thrive on being pushed to their limits. The punch and counter punch, constant raising of performance and response speak volumes about these two sporting greats - Federer, majestic, calm, full of poise and timing, striving for success; Nadal, intense, relentless, passionate, dynamic and seemingly driven by raw emotion to ensure he doesn't lose. Two very different recipes to bring out an incredibly similar standard of performance.
We are lucky to be witnessing these epic encounters - seldom in sport will two such stand-out performers be defined by the performances they produced collaboratively, despite their immense individual achievements. It's a privilege to be able to learn from watching these two greats.
20 January 2009
Just for today...
If the kind of objective feedback that you're used to has gone awol, it can be pretty difficult to judge yourself in the way that you're used to. This is a bit like when the sports people we work with have to perform in very different weather conditions - the way they or the equipment responds is very different, so objective feedback soon becomes misleading.
When the hard data is untrustworthy, you have to be great at trusting how you're feeling during the key performance moments. You also have to trust that you're thinking the right things and doing the right things. You have to build a new, more sensitive portfolio of performance markers, rather than rely on an outdated database of past successes.
So, we'd suggest, if the objective feedback has gone, just for today, you're going to have to focus in on preparing much more thoroughly around the discrete ingredients that produce a great performance. Just for today, work out the contents of your performance script and challenge yourself to deliver the performance, one step at a time, and hold yourself accountable for delivering each step as well as you possibly can. Stay in the moment, focus on step by step excellence and see what it produces. And if the objective feedback is still untrustworthy tomorrow, just for today starts all over again.
When the hard data is untrustworthy, you have to be great at trusting how you're feeling during the key performance moments. You also have to trust that you're thinking the right things and doing the right things. You have to build a new, more sensitive portfolio of performance markers, rather than rely on an outdated database of past successes.
So, we'd suggest, if the objective feedback has gone, just for today, you're going to have to focus in on preparing much more thoroughly around the discrete ingredients that produce a great performance. Just for today, work out the contents of your performance script and challenge yourself to deliver the performance, one step at a time, and hold yourself accountable for delivering each step as well as you possibly can. Stay in the moment, focus on step by step excellence and see what it produces. And if the objective feedback is still untrustworthy tomorrow, just for today starts all over again.
17 January 2009
Performance Fundamentalists
A busy week for us at K2, hence the lack of missives. Back to it though.
We were thinking about the fundamental things that underpin performance this week and as any good student will tell you (!), the first thing to do when thinking about something is to look it up in the dictionary and provide the definition verbatim! So, here you are:
fundamental
• adjective of or serving as a foundation or core; of central importance.
• noun a central or primary rule or principle.
Having thought about that it seemed to us that a lot of the time, when it comes to performance, people forget about fundamentals, or they don't keep remembering them! They presume because they've built the foundation or core once, that they don't have to worry about the obvious things any more. It sometimes seems trivial to go back to work on things that have been put in place long ago, when there's much more sophisticated things to be thinking about and getting better at.
From our work within elite sport, we see that there's an explicit and continual balancing of maintaining and improving fundamentals along with developing high end abilities. There is a constant paranoia that the fundamental skills or tactics could be better, upon which the performance is founded. Is your performance foundation getting ever stronger because you're constantly improving the fundamentals, or is your performance structure getting ever higher with new abilities, but the foundation is being neglected in search of new heights? Any other thoughts on performance fundamentalism? (Check out what we've written about simplicity in our thoughts too)
We were thinking about the fundamental things that underpin performance this week and as any good student will tell you (!), the first thing to do when thinking about something is to look it up in the dictionary and provide the definition verbatim! So, here you are:
fundamental
• adjective of or serving as a foundation or core; of central importance.
• noun a central or primary rule or principle.
Having thought about that it seemed to us that a lot of the time, when it comes to performance, people forget about fundamentals, or they don't keep remembering them! They presume because they've built the foundation or core once, that they don't have to worry about the obvious things any more. It sometimes seems trivial to go back to work on things that have been put in place long ago, when there's much more sophisticated things to be thinking about and getting better at.
From our work within elite sport, we see that there's an explicit and continual balancing of maintaining and improving fundamentals along with developing high end abilities. There is a constant paranoia that the fundamental skills or tactics could be better, upon which the performance is founded. Is your performance foundation getting ever stronger because you're constantly improving the fundamentals, or is your performance structure getting ever higher with new abilities, but the foundation is being neglected in search of new heights? Any other thoughts on performance fundamentalism? (Check out what we've written about simplicity in our thoughts too)
8 January 2009
3 Key Attitudes...
We know from the greatest people we've worked with that they're superb at consistently carrying around with them the ideas that...
Their natural talent is not enough for them to excel...
They have to constantly keep working on where to focus their desire to improve... and
They have to embrace change and drive change if they're going to truly be able to be great.
These become particularly important when results are hard to come by.
Do they work for you?
2 January 2009
Emotions, Performance... and results
You may have read a lot about Emotional Intelligence from good folks like JCA or Daniel Goleman. You might even have had your emotional intelligence measured! It's great stuff and an essential component of any high performer - we don't know any person at the top of their game who doesn't posses huge self-awareness and self-management skills, and they're equally tuned in to getting the most from other people too. However, great performers also posses enormous amounts of Performance Intelligence® too.
You might want to think about what your balance is between Emotional and Performance Intelligences going into 2009. Being emotionally intelligent alone will get you so far in these testing times, but actually being 100% on top of your Performance Intelligence® will ensure different results altogether.
Performance Intelligence® is made up of how well you know the arena you perform in and how well you know yourself as a performer (here's some other stuff we wrote about it). In addition, you need to know how effectively you use this knowledge to help drive the strategy and actions that lead to results. It's all about knowing AND doing, and having the balance between the two absolutely focused on delivering predictable results.
We think the smart focus for 2009 is on maximising Performance Intelligence® and it's safe to say that you'll have to be emotionally intelligent to bring everyone with you who you need on your journey, so get EI + PI to maximise your resilience and effectiveness from here on in!
You might want to think about what your balance is between Emotional and Performance Intelligences going into 2009. Being emotionally intelligent alone will get you so far in these testing times, but actually being 100% on top of your Performance Intelligence® will ensure different results altogether.
Performance Intelligence® is made up of how well you know the arena you perform in and how well you know yourself as a performer (here's some other stuff we wrote about it). In addition, you need to know how effectively you use this knowledge to help drive the strategy and actions that lead to results. It's all about knowing AND doing, and having the balance between the two absolutely focused on delivering predictable results.
We think the smart focus for 2009 is on maximising Performance Intelligence® and it's safe to say that you'll have to be emotionally intelligent to bring everyone with you who you need on your journey, so get EI + PI to maximise your resilience and effectiveness from here on in!
24 December 2008
Looking Forward to 2009...
It's interesting how by creating a whole "eve" concept, it adds to the excitement of what's to come. Would Christmas Day be quite so exciting without the clear, exciting signposts that are Christmas Eve? Probably not quite as exciting, although the day would still hold its own charms and rituals. However, there's some useful learning from creating a sense of anticipation, excitement and expectation.
Looking forward to things, in both meanings of the phrase, is important for delivering optimal performance and taking on challenges. Just think about how something feels psychologically different if you're not looking forward to it - you're tentative about what's going to happen, you're unhelpfully nervous, you've got a predominantly reactive mindset where the situation is controlling you, you're probably not confident about how you're going to perform and you'd happily not actually go through with the event in reality.
When you're looking forward to something in contrast, you can't wait for the time to start, you're excited about the prospects of what's going to happen, you're confident you'll take everything in your stride as well as carry out the bits you've planned, in short lots of positive thoughts and emotions.
Thinking about some key events at the beginning of 2009, what can you do to make sure that you're creating a Christmas Eve feel for some key events early in the year? What is there to look forward to? What is there that engages your curiosity and makes you wonder about how well you might be able to deliver some performances?
With a lot of natural trepidation around from a business point of view for 2009, everyone is going to have to work harder at looking forward to things in order that they take the challenges on with maximum effect. Good job we've got Christmas to learn from.
Looking forward to things, in both meanings of the phrase, is important for delivering optimal performance and taking on challenges. Just think about how something feels psychologically different if you're not looking forward to it - you're tentative about what's going to happen, you're unhelpfully nervous, you've got a predominantly reactive mindset where the situation is controlling you, you're probably not confident about how you're going to perform and you'd happily not actually go through with the event in reality.
When you're looking forward to something in contrast, you can't wait for the time to start, you're excited about the prospects of what's going to happen, you're confident you'll take everything in your stride as well as carry out the bits you've planned, in short lots of positive thoughts and emotions.
Thinking about some key events at the beginning of 2009, what can you do to make sure that you're creating a Christmas Eve feel for some key events early in the year? What is there to look forward to? What is there that engages your curiosity and makes you wonder about how well you might be able to deliver some performances?
With a lot of natural trepidation around from a business point of view for 2009, everyone is going to have to work harder at looking forward to things in order that they take the challenges on with maximum effect. Good job we've got Christmas to learn from.
18 December 2008
Track Records and Perspective
A quick thought for you...
Step 1. Look back over your career and identify your top 10 career highlights (or 5 if you're pushed for time!)
Step 2. You're a common denominator in all of those highlight performances. Which of your personal qualities shine through as instrumental to success in each of those occasions? Are there one or two qualities that are ever presents in all of the successes? Are there any qualities in there that you've taken for granted or forgotten about?
Step 3. Looking back over the last month, how and where have you deliberately exploited those qualities that are obviously so important to your success? How effectively have you been playing to the strengths that you have?
Step 4. Whilst taking some time off over Christmas, when your thoughts turn to work, why not spend some time planning how you're going to kick-off your performances in 2009 completely led by your qualities from step 2. How are you going to bring those qualities to life, one day at a time as you face the early challenges of a new year?
Planning how you're going to perform to your strengths will bring you an extra few essential bits of control and confidence over your performance when you need it most and will help to start the year in style. This helps with controlling the situation and not letting the situation you're in control you.
Step 1. Look back over your career and identify your top 10 career highlights (or 5 if you're pushed for time!)
Step 2. You're a common denominator in all of those highlight performances. Which of your personal qualities shine through as instrumental to success in each of those occasions? Are there one or two qualities that are ever presents in all of the successes? Are there any qualities in there that you've taken for granted or forgotten about?
Step 3. Looking back over the last month, how and where have you deliberately exploited those qualities that are obviously so important to your success? How effectively have you been playing to the strengths that you have?
Step 4. Whilst taking some time off over Christmas, when your thoughts turn to work, why not spend some time planning how you're going to kick-off your performances in 2009 completely led by your qualities from step 2. How are you going to bring those qualities to life, one day at a time as you face the early challenges of a new year?
Planning how you're going to perform to your strengths will bring you an extra few essential bits of control and confidence over your performance when you need it most and will help to start the year in style. This helps with controlling the situation and not letting the situation you're in control you.
30 November 2008
Go on, be brave...
Whilst having a rare flick through the FT the other day, we happened across a book review for "Managing to Learn Using The A3 Management Process to Solve Problems, Gain Agreement, Mentor, and Lead" by John Shook. Not the most enticing of titles! However, the FT article was entitled "The Toyota mindset revealed", which got us interested straight away.However, if you can't be bothered to read it, here's some bits that we thought were great and we wondered how many people were going to be brave in these challenging times and see if they could take advantage of these simple, but powerful ideas (or make more from them if you're already doing it!).
"Western managers think their job is to get results. Toyota thinks managers’ job is to design and sustain processes that generate these results as a matter of course. Western managers think they employ workers to do a job. Toyota employs workers to learn how to do the job better – to keep improving that process, and therefore the results. Western managers think management is about knowing the answers and telling other people what to do. Toyota disagrees again: if managers tell staff what to do, they take responsibility away.
The manager’s job is to help staff learn problem-solving skills and work out what they need to do for themselves. Real organisational leadership is about doing both – improving operations and developing people – at the same time in such a way that they are mutually supporting."
Highly simple, highly effective ideas. Very in keeping with the PlanetK2 view of things in relation to eliteteam concepts and very clear that if you ultimately want high performance that is culturally dependent and not reliant on individual leaders, then these kind of ideas are the way forward... especially when the performance demands are higher than ever.
26 November 2008
Next step thinking...
The concept of "next step thinking" came up last week in a conversation. This is all about focusing on being in the moment and being confident that you can do the next thing you need to do with complete focus and confidence. It seems that this is very important at the moment. Much of our thinking, confidence and focus is constantly tempered by a view to the future and a sense check of whether we're going to "deliver the result". We rely heavily on this barometer of future success to give us a sense of belief in the here and now and as a result we confuse personal confidence to perform with our perception of expected future success.
So, given that the ability to predict the future and work out that everything is going to be o.k. seems to be a near impossibility at the moment we have a couple of choices.
1) Choose the fact that we can no longer predict the future and become very stressed and have a constant feeling of impending doom with us every step along the way, or
2) Accept that information about the future is essential, but untrustworthy at the moment, so focus on building the future one step at a time.
If we focus on the next step and think about all the reasons why we are completely confident that we can take the next step with the required skill, style and commitment, then we have a chance of getting on a confidence roll. We all still have the same skills, abilities, knowledge and experience, so it's essential to keep focused on applying these skills to new sets of problems that arise.
So, what's your next step today?
So, given that the ability to predict the future and work out that everything is going to be o.k. seems to be a near impossibility at the moment we have a couple of choices.
1) Choose the fact that we can no longer predict the future and become very stressed and have a constant feeling of impending doom with us every step along the way, or
2) Accept that information about the future is essential, but untrustworthy at the moment, so focus on building the future one step at a time.
If we focus on the next step and think about all the reasons why we are completely confident that we can take the next step with the required skill, style and commitment, then we have a chance of getting on a confidence roll. We all still have the same skills, abilities, knowledge and experience, so it's essential to keep focused on applying these skills to new sets of problems that arise.
So, what's your next step today?
14 November 2008
Paradoxes of Performing...
in pressure situations.
Often the success of delivering when facing challenging conditions can be influence greatly by being able to hold two paradoxical beliefs at the same time.
For example, in Good to Great, Jim Collins introduces the Stockdale Paradox, in which he outlines the importance of being able to "confront the brutal reality of the situation you're in, while never losing faith that you'll triumph in the end. We refer to this as Stark-Optimism, and it's an essential quality to work on at any time, but particularly when you're going into threatening unknown territory (after all, it's named after a man who derived the idea whilst in a prisoner of war camp!).
Another good example of the paradoxical thinking you require is the need for Robust Agility - how good are you at maxing out your strengths and leveraging every ounce of performance from them, while focusing on developing new, essential talents for the demands of the challenge you're facing. Simply being Agile isn't enough and simply hoping you're strengths will see you through will limit your effectiveness. You've gotta strive to be great at both.
What would using those paradoxes do for your performance?
Often the success of delivering when facing challenging conditions can be influence greatly by being able to hold two paradoxical beliefs at the same time.
For example, in Good to Great, Jim Collins introduces the Stockdale Paradox, in which he outlines the importance of being able to "confront the brutal reality of the situation you're in, while never losing faith that you'll triumph in the end. We refer to this as Stark-Optimism, and it's an essential quality to work on at any time, but particularly when you're going into threatening unknown territory (after all, it's named after a man who derived the idea whilst in a prisoner of war camp!).
Another good example of the paradoxical thinking you require is the need for Robust Agility - how good are you at maxing out your strengths and leveraging every ounce of performance from them, while focusing on developing new, essential talents for the demands of the challenge you're facing. Simply being Agile isn't enough and simply hoping you're strengths will see you through will limit your effectiveness. You've gotta strive to be great at both.
What would using those paradoxes do for your performance?
8 November 2008
Competitive Learning...
Something we work on a lot in the world of high performance sport revolves around the concept of "competitive learning". If we can learn quicker, more effectively and produce performance refinements quicker than the opposition (between races or matches, or within a tournament), then we know we're gaining a competitive advantage when we're not head to head.
Imagine how much speed of learning and reaction to learning is critical in the current climate. Agility is often talked about with the corporate world (are you agile or fragile?, etc). However, agility has to be the result of great learning through superb knowledge of your own performance and extreme confidence to be able to make the right decisions about how to alter your focus or intent.
Individual or collective learning is a skill, so you have to practise it to get better at it. Just hoping you'll get better at learning quickly in these highly pressured times simply doesn't cut it. Maybe by working out how learning can be competitively advantageous for you, you'll be able to decide how you might invest more effectively in this critical element of performance.
If you can get access to this Harvard Business Review article, it's well worth a read to help clarify one particular way in which learning might work for you. (Learning in the thick of it).
Come and pick our brains about how competitive learning works - can you afford not to right now, when every experience is precious and every performance moment counts?
Imagine how much speed of learning and reaction to learning is critical in the current climate. Agility is often talked about with the corporate world (are you agile or fragile?, etc). However, agility has to be the result of great learning through superb knowledge of your own performance and extreme confidence to be able to make the right decisions about how to alter your focus or intent.
Individual or collective learning is a skill, so you have to practise it to get better at it. Just hoping you'll get better at learning quickly in these highly pressured times simply doesn't cut it. Maybe by working out how learning can be competitively advantageous for you, you'll be able to decide how you might invest more effectively in this critical element of performance.
If you can get access to this Harvard Business Review article, it's well worth a read to help clarify one particular way in which learning might work for you. (Learning in the thick of it).
Come and pick our brains about how competitive learning works - can you afford not to right now, when every experience is precious and every performance moment counts?
5 November 2008
Performance Intelligence...
So, how Performance Intelligent are you?
We've got a simple formula that you can begin to think through that will help you begin to work out what your PI score is.
There's four questions to ask yourself:
How well do I know the world that I have to perform in?
How well do I know my own performance ingredients that are unique to me?
How well do I turn knowledge about my world into effective strategy to deliver?
How consistently do I deliver a performance that exploits all of my unique ingredients?
Have a think about those things and see if you are 100% confident in your answers to the questions. If you're left with an uneasy feeling about the honest appraisal of the questions, then there's probably some pretty simple solutions for helping decrease your concern over the area in question.
We're pretty sure that people who can answer all of the questions with 100% conviction and confidence are very Performance Intelligent. The more Performance Intelligent you are, the greater control you have over delivering results with certainty. Now, wouldn't that be a nice feeling to have - knowing you're going to deliver!
We've got a simple formula that you can begin to think through that will help you begin to work out what your PI score is.
There's four questions to ask yourself:
How well do I know the world that I have to perform in?
How well do I know my own performance ingredients that are unique to me?
How well do I turn knowledge about my world into effective strategy to deliver?
How consistently do I deliver a performance that exploits all of my unique ingredients?
Have a think about those things and see if you are 100% confident in your answers to the questions. If you're left with an uneasy feeling about the honest appraisal of the questions, then there's probably some pretty simple solutions for helping decrease your concern over the area in question.
We're pretty sure that people who can answer all of the questions with 100% conviction and confidence are very Performance Intelligent. The more Performance Intelligent you are, the greater control you have over delivering results with certainty. Now, wouldn't that be a nice feeling to have - knowing you're going to deliver!
28 October 2008
Total Performance
We talk a lot about pies on planet K2... Performance Pies. We know that if you're serious about performing, then you always ensure that every section of your Performance Pie is delivering you maximum value.Typically, people focus a lot on the Technical and Tactical elements of the work (just check out a typical c.v.), but spend less time focused on the difference that physical, mental, emotional and contextual can make to delivering consistently high performance.
We'll focus on some of these key areas over the next few weeks to show you how you can get more out of your Performance Pie during challenging times.
If you don't look to get a complete pie working for you, we reckon you're actually choosing to under perform, by not paying attention to factors that are critical influences in the final analysis. Right now, you probably need all the resource you can get your hands on and there's loads of resource within that pie that probably hasn't been systematically exploited for some time.
21 October 2008
In a simple choice...
In my last post I reflected on the change in context of my role and identity at work and how this impacted on my performance and emotions.
I took a decision there and then to look at my situation differently and to choose to feel something else more useful.
Of course, it is never really as simple as choosing is it? Along with the decision to choose comes the action one has to take to reinforce and affirm the choice. Otherwise it is nothing more than a thought (a field will remain unploughed if you keep turning it over in your head).
So for the past week or so I have been doing just that. Catching myself when I am feeling anything other than what is most helpful and changing the thought pattern; taking time out at the end of the day to either review my personal success (either by myself, or verbally with my partner) and making note of the differences in my emotional and mental state from day to day.
And guess what?
Well, I certainly feel different. I have experienced a sense of walking taller, of feeling prouder and of being a little more self assured inside. "Miraculously" I have also found it easier to carve my groove and get my niche at work...people have started to seek me out once more and involve me in projects and work that they hadn't seen necessary or important before.
Now isn't that strange? Can it be all related to my simple choice?
Of course the clever wotsits at K2 would tell me its all about what I put out there; that it is all about putting myself at the cause rather than than being the effect in my life.
And you know what? I think they might have a point!
I took a decision there and then to look at my situation differently and to choose to feel something else more useful.
Of course, it is never really as simple as choosing is it? Along with the decision to choose comes the action one has to take to reinforce and affirm the choice. Otherwise it is nothing more than a thought (a field will remain unploughed if you keep turning it over in your head).
So for the past week or so I have been doing just that. Catching myself when I am feeling anything other than what is most helpful and changing the thought pattern; taking time out at the end of the day to either review my personal success (either by myself, or verbally with my partner) and making note of the differences in my emotional and mental state from day to day.
And guess what?
Well, I certainly feel different. I have experienced a sense of walking taller, of feeling prouder and of being a little more self assured inside. "Miraculously" I have also found it easier to carve my groove and get my niche at work...people have started to seek me out once more and involve me in projects and work that they hadn't seen necessary or important before.
Now isn't that strange? Can it be all related to my simple choice?
Of course the clever wotsits at K2 would tell me its all about what I put out there; that it is all about putting myself at the cause rather than than being the effect in my life.
And you know what? I think they might have a point!
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