Performance for the leader in you

There is a maxim from Pubilius Syrus, a first century Syrian that shares, “Never promise more than you can perform.” Although this maxim was drafted over 2,000 years ago, it holds great wisdom and weight for us today. Leaders rise and fall by how well they understand and incorporate this idea into their lives.

Syrus, a slave, won his master’s favor by his wit and talent. One can assume he not only wrote messages-of-meaning, he lived them. Upon being freed, he served as a mime throughout Italy. He quickly gained notoriety and was invited to perform at events sponsored by Caesar, eventually winning a competition prize from Caesar himself. Although there must have been serious pressure to perform for these audiences, if he let on more than he could chew, he would have had a short-lived career. By being honest with what he could and could not do, he secured a successful career.

As leaders, we gain trust and strengthen our reputation when our spoken word matches our abilities. Knowing what we can accomplish and then following through on it is much better than reaching beyond our capabilities and falling short. By being honest with ourselves and with others about what can and cannot be performed we set ourselves up for leadership success.

In peace,

Jonathan Kroll

t: @jonathan_kroll

e: jkroll@goibelieve.com

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Jonathan is an educator at Emerson College in Boston preparing for his PhD in the fall.

Performance for the professional in you

KSA stands for Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. It’s a common term found in the armed forces and other government agencies. When a government agency announces a position (on www.usajobs.gov for example), they will post specific KSA’s required for the job. Part of the application process requires the applicant to write (in full detail) describing their experiences in each one of those areas. The KSA process is utilized to assess past work experiences so that they can predict performance trends and habits for future positions.

Although a highly effective process, the KSA application process is missing something critical. It’s the actual thing they are trying to bring about – conviction or rather, purpose driven performance. Without conviction in the equation; knowledge, skills, and abilities would be life-less and performance trends will continue as such. However, when the individual is driven by purpose, peak performance can both be achieved and attained.

After all, it’s in performance when our goals are put in motion. It is a chance for our actions to reflect our beliefs. As we continue to gain more knowledge, acquire more skills, and develop more abilities the more we are given the opportunity to perform. When performance is purpose driven, nothing will stand in the way of progress.

By Joe Lamendola

e: jlamendola@goibelieve.com

t: @joelamendola

fb: Joe Lamendola

Performance for the athlete in you

In this blog I will talk about peak performance and some factors that will help you achieve peak performance and some factors that may be stopping you from reaching it. When talking about athletic peak performance you tend to think of the athletes like Lebron James, Shawn White or Diana Taurasi, the athletes that are considered the best at their sport. But anyone who plays sports or follows sports closely knows that peak performance is not limited to those who are at the top of their sport or win gold medals. Every sport has participants who achieve remarkable accomplishments while finishing behind the leaders. Here are a couple strategies that can help every athlete achieve peak performance.

Have a positive pregame mindset before competition.

As an athlete sometimes we hold ourselves to very high expectations. For example, I have spoken to the Harvard baseball coach who has problems with one of his starting pitchers. He said the pitcher expects to throw a no hitter every time he steps onto the mound. So what happens when the pitcher gives up his first hit? The pitcher would get upset and frustrated that he gave up the no hitter and he would feel that he had failed. The coach says it often takes him a couple innings to regain control of his emotions and get back into rhythm. But by the time he regains control it is too late and the damage has already been done.

We have to identify these expectations and factors that will cause us to get upset during competition. Because to achieve peak performance you cannot let a minor setback ruin your whole performance. Throw out the idea of being a perfectionist! If you carry these high expectations into your competition you set yourself up for feeling like you are failing and you leave yourself very little room for success.

Let go of errors before emotions snowball out of control.

I was watching Phil Mickelson play golf in the final round of the 2010 Masters, which he was in the lead. He had trouble all week hitting the fairways off the tee and in the last round he again put a drive in the woods and had a very difficult recovery shot under the pressure of The Masters Championship. He stepped up to his ball and hit a shot through the trees and onto the green and saved par on the whole. The announcer who was following him went on to say that that is what separates Phil from all the other golfers in the world. When Phil hits a bad shot he regains control of his emotions and it allows him to focus on hitting a great next shot.

Having control of your emotions is when you stay even keeled and poised even when you are challenged with adversity. Even the top athletes like Phil and Tiger Woods get frustrated and upset when they make errors but they are able to regain control quickly and get back on track fast. Recovering quickly from mistakes separates champions athletes and those who crack when adversity strikes.

Every athlete has the capability to achieve peak performance, not just the top athletes. I hope you can use these simple strategies on your way to peak performance and success in your sport.

by Joe Villapiano

Joe is an assistant Harvard Football coach and Recruiting Coordinator. He also leads iB-LIEVE's team building programs.