Debra Kasowski

9 Powerful Habits of the High Performer

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I have always enjoyed studying people and performance. I love to learn about what makes them tick and what ticks them off? What is the trigger? How do they switch gears when things do not go as planned? What do they do differently that the average person?

I would like to consider myself a high performer but I also know that I can become more disciplined as sometimes those late nights do not lead to early morning starts. I love mornings but I can also get caught up in my work because I love it so much!

Think about the successful people in your life, what are their daily habits? How did they become successful?

Many people see the success and think it was handed to them on a silver platter. Here you go! I wish it was that easy but – it is not so!Waiter with empty silver tray

There is so much more that you do not see. What goes on behind closed doors…the long hours, missed vacations, and all the small daily sacrifices to reach their end goal.

Get Up Earlier than The Rest.

Prepare yourself for the day before everyone else is up. 5 am is a great start. Your body is for movement. Fit in some morning exercise at least 30 minutes. Eat breakfast. Read an industry related book or write in a journal for about 20 minutes. You may even consider meditation or prayer to clear your mind of any doubts or worries you may have. High performers are go-getters.

You can get a few more hours up on the world – watch your productivity soar. Why? You will feel stronger, more clear on what you need to do, your body is fueled and energy is up. You are in position to conquer the world.

Take 100% Responsibility for Your Life.

High performers do not make excuses for their actions. They own them and if something did not go as planned they look for a solution or admit their involvement. High performers do not complain or look to blame any one. They look for what they may have done to change the outcome or what their contribution was. There is no sense dwelling on something you have no control over as a root cause analysis does not change the outcome. Positive forward thinking builds momentum. It is an unshakeable attitude – an air of confidence that says – this is my life and I have choices.

Learn from Your Mistakes.

I know people who are afraid to try new things because they are perfectionists and are afraid of failure – perhaps you feel the same way. If you do not try new things, you are depriving yourself of a lifetime of new experiences and opportunities. There is no guarantee of success or failure without an attempt. What you think is playing it safe can actually be your greatest risk. Instead, look for the lessons and try to not make the same mistake twice.

Progress Before Perfection.

If you wait for everything to be perfect, you may never get started. Strive for your personal best. Don’t worry about what others are doing – they are not living your  journey. Stop comparing yourself to others and devaluing yourself.

Go the extra mile.Female Runner Winning Marathon

Work harder than the competition and deliver more than expected. Do what others do not do and you will be noticed and remembered. High achievers ensure they make an impact in the lives of others whether it be providing more value or helping them reach their goals.

Take time to learn more to earn more.

High performers do not watch a lot of television unless it is part of their work. According to some reported statistics collected by A.C. Nielsen Co. and reported by Norman Herr, PhD from California State University, Northridge on Television and Health, the average North American watches 4 hours a day of television (28 hours/week). To a high performer, time is money. Time is relationships. Time is education, knowledge, and experience. Time is health. The most shocking information I noted when reading Television & Health was that parents only have 3.5 minutes of meaningful conversation with their children a week.How are we as a society encouraging the high performers of the future?

You have the same amount of time as the next person to achieve success. What are you doing with the time you have? You can be reading and researching to learn more about your industry, and investing in yourself both professionally and personally. The more you learn and apply your learning the greater your earning potential.

Write down your goals.

Make it real. By putting your goals on paper and inking them, you are make more of a commitment. Keep your goals visible so they stay top of mind. Write down strategies that you plan to take to achieve them. This exercise will help you stay focused and more inspired to take action. Breaking down your goals makes them less overwhelming. High performers know that once a ball is in motion and action is taken. Momentum occurs.

Surround Yourself with Like-Minded People.

You are the average of the five people you surround yourself the most. You may have heard the phrase, “You become the company that you keep.” Stop and think about the people you spend the most time with. Eliminate or limit the interaction you have with toxic people and surround yourself with people who elevate you and want you to help you reach your goals. High performers are always stretching themselves by getting to know new people and learning new things. Positive environments fosters growth. Raise the bar!

Step Out of Your Comfort Zone.

Complacency is like the kiss of death. When you get to comfortable, you begin to resist growth and change. Change is progress. You may be afraid to take a risk. Remember the more knowledge or you have about a subject, the more competent and confident you feel. High performers know that risks can lead to great rewards. Do your homework and make your own decision about whether you want to go ahead with something. Trust your gut.

High performers create their own success through sacrifice, discipline, and hard work. They even ask for HELP! Look at the high achievers in your life. What are they doing?

If they can do it so can you!

The question is..what are you willing to do?

Are You Thriving in Chaos or Thriving on Chaos?

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Some people create their own drama. They need to be a part of the gossip and live their reality like a soap opera. Hopefully the gossip they are a part of is good gossip – spreading how great they think people are. If not, they are coming from a place of judgment and their assumptions and perception may be totally off base.

Whereas for others, life chaos comes from taking on too much or over-scheduling themselves. There can be several reasons for this:

  • You do not want to miss out on being a part of some big. (You like to be where the action is.)
  • You tell yourself just one more thing – it can’t hurt. (I can handle it.)
  • I do not want to be seen as not contributing. (You need to ensure people see you as helping out; otherwise, you may feel a tad bit guilty.)
  • If I do not help, no one else will. (Martyr – however – there are times I am sure you could be right – no one else will help. That’s when you are a superhero!)
  • I can’t say no – what will they say. (No boundaries)

Some of the symptoms of chaos are:

  • a cluttered desk or messy house16572556_l
  • finances are a disarray – you do not know how much money is coming or going
  • exhaustion
  • missing deadlines
  • losing things
  • getting sick more often
  • feeling weighed down and overwhelmed
  • tension in your relationships
  • forgetting to make phone calls or following through on your commitments

What happens when you drop the ball? Guilt, shame, blame…more chaos!

When the world feels like you are on merry-go-round, it is time to stop! Get off! Don’t let chaos become a standard part of your life. Thriving on chaos is not sustainable nor it is healthy.

You do have a choice. A choice to say “no” when you need to, be a part of the action that takes you closer to your goals, and to make self-care a priority.

When you start making a choice and chaos comes like a whirlwind, you can draw on on your resiliency because you are strong, self-assured, and resilient. You can thrive in chaos – you may even get an adrenaline rush but can remain quite level headed to think clearly and make better decisions.

Thriving in chaos is much different than thriving on chaos. Have you ever watched someone who is calm and collected in a crisis situation? As a business owner or an executive, you have to make some very important decisions and sometimes these decisions are very timely. You need to be able to make decisions as quick as an air traffic controller. You need to be able to lead the people who look to for vision and guidance.

In emotional intelligence, people who thrive in chaos would be considered to have impulse control, assertiveness, and emotional awareness. They work toward keeping people around them calm regardless of the environment. Nothing can get accomplished when your people are in a state of panic. It is these situations were good leaders are separated from great leaders.

Which person are you? Do you thrive on chaos (creating your own) or thrive in chaos?

Are You Being Interested or Are You Being Interesting?

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How many times have you been in a conversation and have felt that the person you are speaking with really didn’t listen to a thing you said? They were either staring through you, distracted by the surroundings, or already blurting out something about themselves in relation to your story. It can get a bit frustrating. I personally find that it is harder and harder to connect with people who are fully present. They are are often checking their cellphones or computers for emails or text messages or even surfing the net. 19591120_m

How refreshing would it be for someone to listen to what  you have to say without saying anything until you are done? Would you have finally received the air time you have been waiting for? I am in the midst of listening to and reading Mark Goulston’s book entitled, Just Listen as he shares some information about how to get through to anyone. One of the areas he discussed is to not only act interested but be interested in a conversation. Goulston stated that there are 3 keys that will help you demonstrate that you are more interested in the people you are talking to or in conversation with:

Actively listen…

  1. “Stop thinking of the conversation as a tennis match.” (Goultston, 2010, pg.59) When someone is speaking, don’t worry about formulating the next question. Be a detective and learn more. Stop, actively listen expectantly to what is being said. Maintain eye contact. If you are truly listening, you will intuitively have a question come to mind to ask.

Intuitively you will know…

Recently I met a gentleman whose primary language was not English and when he is conversation he stated he is constantly trying to translate the language in his head and prepare the next question. He stated that his family members often commented that he is not truly listening. He is a very smart and well respected man. I asked him to come from a place of curiosity and understanding when speaking to his family members or even his co-workers. With relief, he said he would give it a try as he said it would relieve a lot of pressure if he was not focusing on the translation and the formulation of the next question at the same time.

Ask more questions…

2.  “Ask questions that demonstrate that you want to learn more.” (Goulston, 2010, pg. 60) Lean in and use your body language and eyes to demonstrate your interest in the topic. You will find that people will start to feel more comfortable sharing stories about themselves when you take a genuine interest in who they are.

Mark Goulston provided the “FTD” framework:

F -“I feel x…”

T – ” I think y…”

D – “I did or would do z…”

This framework allows a person to open up and share what is meaningful to them.

Take a genuine interest…

3. Do the right thing – shut up and listen!

Ask another question about what you heard. Ask the person who it sharing the story to tell you more. Summarize what you have heard.

Live an interesting life…

Talking about yourself and sharing how great you are and not asking about another person about themselves can make others feel intimidated and that they cannot relate to you. It is important to take a genuine interest in others. The best advice I can give you about bing interesting is to lead an interesting life so when others take a genuine interest in you – you can share how you feel, what you think, and what you do or would do. People can learn things that they did not know about you. You may also learn how more alike you are to another person versus focusing on the differences you may have.

The art of listening is a communication technique that can transform relationships and business. No matter what processes and systems are in place, people are human and need to feel that they are heard, understood, and made a contribution. I highly recommend this book for your library.

Goulston, Mark. (2010). Just Listen: Discover the Secret to Getting Through to Just About Anyone. AMACOM. New York, NY.

5 Secrets of Effective Delegation

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“If you want to do a few small things right, do them yourself. If you want to do great things and make a big impact, learn to delegate.”
― John C. Maxwell

Throughout my career, I have witnessed several forms of delegation. Some leaders were very effective at delegation whereas others were not so effective. If you think of some of the leaders or managers you have worked with, you can probably tell us why each person was more effective at delegating than the other. What did the effective manager or leader do differently?

Happy Business People In MeetingDelegation can be a very powerful tool in empowering employees and assigning work to the most appropriate person with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to produce the best work. When I was learning how to do CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation), one of the first steps you do is to call for help and better yet if someone else is available you would say, “You in the blue shirt go call 911. Are you going? Get back to me.” The instruction is very specific and ensures that the person is going to follow through. Delegation is not sending an email and pleading for help. You may not know if the person or group of people have read the email, what their capacity is, or what their skill set or interests are.

During a time when employees and leaders are asked to do more with less, delegation is the key to allowing you to focus on where your greatest return on investment is.

Are there tasks that others can do better than you?

Are there tasks that require only your attention?

Are there tasks or research that can be done before you make a decision?

If you said “Yes” to any of the questions, you can start delegating some tasks to others but keep the following secrets of effective delegation close at hand:

  1. Set clear expectations of roles and responsibilities. If the person you delegate a task to does not understand what their roles is or what the expectations are, they are bound for failure. As the captain at the head of the ship, you will go down as well if you do not course correct. Clear expectations minimize disappointments and misunderstandings. How much freedom does the person have to make decisions? Do they have to check in with you or the team before proceeding? Empower the people who work for you by letting them know what you need.ID-10066401
  2. Share your vision of what you want to accomplish. The more specific you can be about what you wish to accomplish, the more clarity you provide to your people. They will be better able to help you accomplish the vision. They may even have suggestions in how to achieve it. When your people share your vision, they will be motivated to help achieve it because it has importance to them.
  3. Ensure you delegate the whole task and set milestones for check in and progress. There is nothing worse than someone delegating something and then watching or questioning your every move. Delegation is not micromanagement. Micromanagement is suffocating and stumps creativity and innovation. The person you delegated to will feel as though you do not trust them to get the job well.
  4. Delegate the right work to the right person. Delegation is about providing meaningful work where a person feels they are taking on more responsibility not just adding to the amount of work they already have. Delegate to the person who has the knowledge, skills, and abilities to do the job well. Reassure them that you will be there to support them if required. Not only will they feel empowered but you as the leader will also look like a superstar!
  5. Be specific. When assigning a task, ensure the person has all the information and resources to get the job done. Ask them to repeat back to you what you have asked them to do. Clarification ensures that the person you delegated to have a clear understanding of what it is you want done. People cannot read your mind so tell them what you want.

People often have more skills and abilities than what you may give them credit for. Chances are the people who work for you have a greater potential than they are even aware of. Why not safely empower, stretch them, and build their capacity to do great things?

“If we all did the things we are really capable of doing, we would literally astound ourselves.”

― Thomas A. Edison

What delegation skills have you gained that make you an effective manager or leader?