Going to university was a big step up for me. The first day of my 2-year program to complete an MBA I was presented with a big fat textbook and 3 ring binder filled with readings. I nervously said to the person next to me,
“At least we have two years to work our way through this lot”
He responded with,
“This is just for the next 6 weeks!”
I think my heart may have stopped beating as did my breathing. What had I done? I am not sure what kicked in first, my breathing or my heart. I spent that first day in class having bizarre thoughts about eating and sleeping. How much sleep does a person really need? After some weeks our cohort coined the phrase, ‘sleep is for wimps’. My investigation then began on the capacity caffeine provides in maintaining an alert mind.
Eventually, I adopted a rhythm and figured out some disciplines and habits to get me through a full-time study course while working full time. Habits carry us strongly towards intended goals or eventual outcomes. Habits had led me to depressive thinking and eventually clinical depression. Habits also put me on a path out of depression got me through 2 years of full on study and full time work.
May I share some ideas from BRENDON BURCHARD’s book HIGH PERFORMANCE HABITS – How Extraordinary People Become That Way.
Brendon Burchard discusses 6 essential habits
“Seek clarity. Generate energy. Raise necessity. Increase productivity. Develop Influence. Demonstrate Courage.
These are the six habits that you need to adopt if you are to reach high performance in any situation. In the hundreds of personal efforts and social behaviors that we’ve observed, these habits move the needle the most in dramatically improving performance.” – Brendon Burchard
Habit 1 – Seek Clarity
High performers have a clear vision of the outcome. This is not a one-time exercise, This is an ongoing process of review and modification. The essential point is to keep the vision of the future compelling and fresh. A compelling future provides a gravity or pull that is greater than the distractions to move off from the forward moving path.
“Our research shows that compared with their peers, high performers have more clarity on who they are, what they want, how to get it, and what they find meaningful and fulfilling. We’ve found that if you can increase someone’s clarity, you up their overall high-performance score. Clarity is the child of careful thought and mindful experimentation. It comes from asking yourself questions continually and further refining your perspective on life.” – Brendon Burchard
When presenting the setting of goals and objectives when teaching I love to use the example of gym membership. Most people seem to identify with setting goals for fitness and diet. What is common is the challenge to maintain the momentum towards the goal.
It is exciting to begin attending the gym in spring when the days are getting longer. You arrive at your new gym feeling good in your new running shoes and outfit you have recently purchased. Your new water bottle is in your new workout bag. It is exciting as you carry with you the image of a new level of health and a mental picture of that new slimmer reflection in the mirror.
Brendon Burchard states, high performers and those who accomplish their goals spend some time each day thinking about what they need to do to claim the new version of themselves. They also consider how they will interact with others in social situations. They consider positive responses to distractions from diet and exercise.
According to Brendon Burchard the accomplishment of goals and objectives becomes powerful when you develop a passion for the end point. You add to that the knowledge of the personal growth you will claim and the benefit this will be to others.
If we return to the gym membership analogy. A poor goal would be,
‘I will go to the gym 3 times per week and lose 10 kgs over 4 months’.
If we were to adopt Brendon Burchard’s approach the Clarity about the future may be.
‘I attended the gym for 4 months and this was exciting, I felt an energy after each workout that lasted through the day. It took some self-discipline, but I became stronger with my commitment. In turn my capacity for self-discipline increased. This gave me more confidence in other areas of my life as I set goals. My family benefited because I can now run around and play with my kids without running out of energy. This has been great for my family.’
The formula for Personal Satisfaction = Passion + Growth + Contribution
“Excellence is an art won by training and habituation. We do not act rightly because we have virtue or excellence, but we rather have those because we have acted rightly. We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act but a habit.” – Aristotle