I was once working with a group of talented professionals. They all had a tremendous amount of experience and education. They were all able to achieve a certain level of performance in their current roles, however, the manager of the team knew their current level of performance was not reflective of the skills and talents they possessed, and therefore they were not performing at 100%.
After meeting with several team members and getting a better understanding of what they did, it became clear to me that they were not relaxed enough during their day to perform at their best, and the company was losing money because of this.
I know that might sound strange, and it is true – we do need a certain amount of stress to perform well (e.g., deadlines). However, when we are actively engaged in a performance activity (say, giving a presentation), we need to be relaxed enough to let our performance occur naturally.
I learned this skill early on in my athletic career. In order to perform at one’s best, you need to have loose muscles, a clear head, and just let the body and mind do their thing.
I am sure you have attended events and have heard great speakers speak. They are so natural at speaking and connecting with their audience. Well, they are performing in the same way a high-performance athlete performs, channeling all their energy and excitement, staying relaxed and in tune with what they are doing.
Here are three steps you can take to help you stay relaxed when you are performing at your best.
1) Connect
High-level performers know the long-term goals of their organization and they get some motivation from setting and striving for these long-term goals. However, they have the ability to stay relaxed and focused on the daily steps and actions they must take in order to accomplish the long-term goals. Connecting to the small steps in front of you will help you remain relaxed when your best performance is required.
2) Breathe
This might sound a little Zen, but if you try just taking a few deep breaths before you engage in your performance activity, you will be surprised how relaxed and focused you become when performing that activity. You will see this type of breathing done by many top-level executives just before they give an important presentation or talk.
3) Set mini-goals
High-level performers are great at developing mini-goals that need to be achieved in order to reach their long-term and short-term goals. By clearly identifying your mini-goals (daily or weekly), you give yourself the ability to be focused and relaxed in order to achieve your longer-term goals. This will also start to increase your levels of self-motivation – as every little goal you accomplish will give you a sense of self-satisfaction, and energy to keep pursuing those longer-term goals.
Turn Your Knowledge into Performance Results
1) Stay relaxed and focused when performing the activities that move you closer to your long-term goals.
2) Decide what your weekly mini-goals are for the upcoming week.
NEXT STEP
If you would like to learn more about how I can assist your organization in elevating their performance, please contact me at 416-429-1247 or email at paul@actusperformance.com.
All the best in achieving your highest performance.
Paul
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