Achieving high performance

For many leaders, organizations, and individuals, maintaining high performance levels is a pressing issue. It's not uncommon to reach a reasonable level of performance and then strive for more. However, the real challenge lies in sustaining this high performance indefinitely. Achieving and maintaining high performance is a desired outcome for the organization, and it requires many pieces to fall into place.

The challenge for organizations and people lies with people's skills and abilities. It would be impossible for an organization to achieve it if it has not been completed for the people in it, first things first. One thing that can be considered curious or novel in this approach is that achieving this does not depend much on the level of knowledge of those involved. It depends more on the level of commitment and everyone's decision to lead a better life. Yes, a particular decision to lead a fulfilling life in all its aspects, not only circumscribed in the job or work environment.

A fundamental principle of any personal development or organizational initiative we use at Sinapzys is that no one cannot give what do not have. So, if we're looking for high performance from others, then high performance must be a behavior in ourselves, right? It is called leading by example. For this reason, to perform well at the level of an organization, naturally, we must have it at the level of its people.

High-performance behavior, i.e., maintaining results that add essential value to the strategy or personal plan day after day, logically and intentionally, is intimately linked to developing two competencies: 1) motivation and vital energy, and 2) life management. Of course, creating each of these competencies requires learning, time, decision, and a lot of intent.

The theme of self-motivation and vital energy, I wrote about it with some depth in my blog of February 12, 2021: Breathing and a good bath. I recommend a complete reading of it if yuo want to start better postioned for success. Proper motivation and vital energy management is the basic input for high performance. Every breakthrough we make to improve our vital energy supply will have an immediate and compound effect over time. The logical sequence of this behavior is simple: with more energy, greater production of results per unit of time. The primary sources of vital energy and motivation organized in the upward direction are ten: food, sleep, exercise, breathing, meditation, couple intimacy and sex, environment, attitude, money well earned, meaning, and purpose of life. Each of these sources deserves its proper understanding and self-management. Also, dozens of entire books have been written on each of them. Knowing how to select the most important or having a high-performance coach who orients you in this regard will help you move forward more effectively.

Life management, well above time management, is the other part that deserves our attention to advance high personal performance. In summary, the main areas of life could be gathered in five, although there may be more according to some personal preferences. In this case, they would be: physical health, spiritual/emotional health, family, friends, and work. None of them is more important than the others. One of them that is malfunctioning could pull the others down to a black hole. In the same way, one that is working very well can help the others rise up. The exclusive dedication to one of them can cause others to suffer and create problems in life. The healthiest thing is that all of them are at similar levels and always advancing in their development, so they never stop. This needs to be managed and done intentionally. It doesn't happen automatically!

To achieve high organizational performance, each person needs to be aware of and develop these areas. At the outset, adoption of the propose methodology will start at about 20% to 80% of the staff. According to the Pareto Rule, the last 20% of the staff will hardly adopt this change.

In an organization, leaders need to understand this process in which all people, including themselves, are moving on previous to start working towards organizational goals. And this is when leaders turn the ability to communicate intimately with each of their followers into an intangible asset critical to the organization. Effective assertive communication begins with knowing how to practice active listening. Knowing how to listen is the foundation of genuine leadership. Knowing how to listen, giving yourself the time to do so, and responding according to what you have heard is essential to generating good communication and empathy, and, consequently, you qualify for trust. Trust is a deposit that the follower makes in the leader; it is a deposit that can be withdrawn, as in a bank. By achieving trust, it is possible to have influence, and leadership is influence, no more, no less. So says John Maxwell, the world's leading leadership teacher.

As a result, organizations with leaders who gain influence from high-performing people become high-performing organizations. High performance is a result; it is a behavior that occurs as a result of knowing how to manage the key points of life for your staff. Your are bringing life to your people and the organization. Voila!