What does it take for you to be doing your best most days?
How do happy, effective leaders, entrepreneurs, professionals, workers, and athletes manage to bring their A-game the majority of the time? It’s simple: either deliberately or not, they have an index—one that acts as a compass to align / realign them to their best.
Before I explain that, none of us can be at our best most days if we’re in the wrong situation. In short, if the economics or work isn’t right for you, your boss (if you have one) or colleagues aren’t good for you, or you are isolated from support / mentoring / coaching / feedback, then you need to take a good hard look at whether a change is needed.
If you ARE in the right situation, but your A-game is the exception, not the rule, then, as I mentioned above, you need your own “peak performance index.” And, you need to check yourself regularly against it. It’s easy--here’s how:
1. Identify your peak all-time personal experience—when you were at your absolute best and most happy in life. It could have been a minute, a day, a year, or a decade…
2. Identify your peak all-time professional experience—when you were at your best and happiest in your work. Again, it could have been brief or prolonged…
3. List all factors that made each of these two experiences great for you, and inspired you to be at your best. They don’t have to be the same for the personal or professional, but you should look at both:
- What was true?
- What were the conditions in your life / your world?
- What was your mindset?
- What was happening for you intellectually, physically, and emotionally?
- What made it so good?
- Why were you at your best?
4. Answer these questions, adding anything else you think is relevant, in simple list form.
5. Sleep on it, then re-look at the list a day or two later. Show it to someone who knows you well, and ask them if there’s anything they observe about it that would be helpful. That will help in case you have a blind spot…
6. Finalize the list, and know that you now have your “Peak Performance Index.”
Compare your current situation to your new “index.” Where do current conditions fall short? Therefore: a) what’s missing for you? B) what do you need to do differently? c) what changes do you WANT to make? d) what changes are you WILLING to make NOW?
That’s the compass you need. Now what are you going to do about it?
Let me know.
David Peck
The Recovering Leader
Principal and Senior Executive Coach
The Goodstone Group, LLC
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