Tag: Performance

HARMONY IS THE HANDBRAKE TO HIGH PERFORMING TEAMS

Posted on by Craig Johns in Article

HARMONY IS THE HANDBRAKE TO HIGH PERFORMING TEAMS

Why are high performing teams as elusive and rare as finding a needle in a haystack? 

Many people experience poor to medium team performance, with some having the opportunity of being part of a good team. We can spot low performance in a heartbeat. On the contrary most people don’t really know what a high performing team looks like, as they haven’t experienced it. 

A lot of what we read on how to create a high performing team is characteristic of what is needed for a good performing team. Respect, trust, goals, communication, inclusion and psychological safety are likely some of the words that you will read. They are all important and the foundations of performance, but not likely to produce a high performing team. 

The characteristics that enable one team to be high performing may be totally different from another. There is no simple formula to developing a high performing team. If there was, everyone would be creating one.

What is it that creates high performing teams?

Is it harmony, accountability or even ownership? Before we dive into what does, let’s unpack a few things first. 

I was very fortunate to be a part of New Zealand’s most winningest sports team, where the Stratford Premiere Men’s Field Hockey Team went unbeaten for 272 games. Yes you read that correctly, 16 years without a loss. It may even be a world record unbeaten sports streak. What is even more impressive is that the team only lost once in 21 years. 

Coming from a town of 5,000 people we were up against teams with a population of more than 20x the size, teams that were younger and even teams that had more talent. There were some characteristics that remained consistent and other things that varied from game to game and season to season. 

Teams may experience short term exposure to what it’s like to be high performing, not many get to do it consistently, year after year. What we achieved was simply extraordinary. This experience led me to ask the question, what does it take to create high performing teams that last. 

THe foundation of high performing teams is talent

A diverse group of talented people who are aligned to the desired outcome and attitude. These people will not necessarily connect individually, but as a whole complement each other. They want to have the space to do what they do best and be supported in areas they are not so strong or energised by. 

They enjoy being united in achieving something together but not necessarily fueled by working in a harmonious environment. There will be some very small pockets of harmony, however it will not be the focus. 

WHY CAN HARMONY BE A HANDBRAKE TO HIGH PERFORMING TEAMS?

A desire to achieve team harmony requires compromise, keeping the peace and can stunt creativity and passion. In the short term harmony can work, but it is very difficult to maintain when striving for high performance. Over time harmony can create an environment of mediocrity, lead to outbursts of frustration and foster quiet quitting.

In the hope of happiness, building harmony and avoiding conflict, we run the risk of minimising each individual’s self worth and the power of diversity, creating unhealthy tension. 

We know diversity and inclusion are important for performance and can support achieving better outcomes. Approaching both from a perspective of achieving harmony is most likely to lead to a suppression of the diversity and an increasing exclusion over time. The more we try to create harmony, the greater the division. 

Why, because many people feel like a handbrake has been applied to their natural talents, what they do best and the speed to achieving an outcome. Their perceived level of importance drops, which can hinder their individual contribution to the team.

IF HARMONY ISN’T THE ANSWER THEN WHAT IS?

If harmony is the handbrake to high performing teams, over the long term, then what is it that is required? Unity. It’s a commonality in all high performing teams. Unity in both the desired outcome and the principles of behaviour to achieve it. If we want diversity of thought and true inclusion we require unity. A unified vision and way of working together.

Harmony is the handbrake to high performance. Focus on building a unified team.

Craig Johns High Performance Leadership Expert

Craig is a 10x National Champion, International coach and CEO turned high performance leadership expert, international speaker and and Inspiring Great Leaders Podcast host.

He is the CEO & Managing Partner of Speakers Institute Corporate, a high performance leadership expert, and a leadership, high performance and workplace culture keynote speaker.

Learn more about how Craig is working with a diverse team of exceptional human beings to inspire great leaders at www.speakersinstitutecorporate.com.

Book Craig as a Keynote Speaker and learn how to become a high performing leader by going to www.craigjohns.com.au for more on the Gravity of Leadership, LIONSHEART Mindset, Break The CEO Code and Atomic Pressure.

Having Courageous Conversations Link
What Is High Performance Link
Relentless Without Being Ruthless Or Reckless Link
How Gravity of Leadership Effects Your Impact Link
Beyond The Comfort Zone Link
People Are Our Greatest Assets Link
Are Leaders Born? Link

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Craig Johns Are you Living

ARE YOU LIVING?

Posted on by nrg2perform in Article
Photo by Anne Lin on Unsplash

ARE YOU LIVING?

By Craig Johns

Life is not separate from work as work is part of life. Too often we hear people in the workplace saying, “I’m working hard now so I can live my life when I retire or when the weekend comes around or during my next holiday”.

“I don’t think of work as work and play as play, it’s all living” 

Sir Richard Branson

Life is how work, home, community and your private self integrate, intersect and interact. They interconnect and feed off each other as we grow and develop through life. The biggest challenge in life is to figure out how to find the time we desire to excel at all aspects of our life.

How many hours a week is required to deliver peak performance at work?

If I spend an extra hour at work, how does that affect my life at home?

To ensure that I have maximum energy at work, how much time do I need to be exercising, switching off, socializing and sleeping?

Should I spend money and take that holiday to paradise now or wait until I have more money saved and are a bit older?

Do the people I socialize with have a positive or negative impact on the other aspects of my life?

We talk about having to make sacrifices in life. This maybe true, but sacrifices are all just choices. Choices that we have full control over. So, how do we know what choices to make if we want to achieve at a higher level? If you don’t have a clear purpose, vision and goals, then you will find it very difficult to find clarity in the decisions you need to make.

“A master in the art of living draws no sharp distinction between work and play.” 

L.P. Jacks

Work-life balance is a common buzz phrase talked about in society. So what is it? Is it either standing still and stagnant, or spending half our life working and half our life living? Depending on how you define balance, it will depend on how you approach your life. If you are working 12hrs a day 7 days a week doing something that you don’t enjoy, engage with or understand why you are doing it, then it only leaves only 4hrs a day for other activities in life, if we take into consideration that we are sleeping 8hrs a day.

“Never get so busy making a living that you forget to make a life.” 

Unknown

Let’s take a look at Work-life integration. It is an outcome of people exercising control and choice in their life to meet life’s challenges. They ensure that they enjoy what they do, take pleasure out of the people they interact with, love becoming better, have purpose and feel satisfied with the life they live.

“I never did a day’s work in my life. It was all fun.” 

Thomas Edison

Your emotions, mood and energy tend to transfer from your work to your life outside of work and vice versa. Very few people have a split personality that they can switch on and off depending the circumstances. Therefore, if you want to be successful in all areas of your life, it is important to be genuine, honest and believe in who you are.

READ MORE ARTICLES

People Are Our Greatest Assets Link
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It’s Your Story Link
Be A Rookie Link

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Savvy Dentist Podcast Craig Johns Atomic Pressure

Savvy Dentist Podcast – Business Lessons from Sporting Legends with Craig Johns

Posted on by nrg2perform in Article

Atomic pressure, the gap between excellent and elite, why Michael Phelps and the All Blacks sustain enduring success, CEO Periodization, planning a career sabbatical, and what it takes to follow your own race in sport, business and in life.

I must say, this podcast is right up there as one of my favorite interviews. Enjoy also getting an insight into how I approach sport as an elite athlete and coach. Thanks Jesse.

Learn the steps you need to take to become an elite performer in your field. Craig Johns, a high performance leadership expert, coach and speaker shares his expertise on this subject today. Craig has been involved in the sporting industry for many years and is able to see potential and help people fulfil their potential. Today, Craig unpacks the steps that are relevant and applicable for you in your dental practice to help you achieve extraordinary results.  

  • [02:16] The story of how Craig came into the sporting industry. 
  • [08:34] Observations around the gap between excellent and elite. 
  • [11:29] Focusing on your own race and goals and improving those instead of other peoples’ races. 
  • [14:15] Explaining the gap between excellent and elite. 
  • [16:30] How to manage performing under pressure. 
  • [19:22] Definition of success and the role it plays in performance. 
  • [21:43] Creating flow of elite performance at a team level. 
  • [25:12] Enduring success rather than fleeting success. 
  • [28:11] The biggest difference between sport and business. 
  • [31:49] Craig’s advice for achieving long term success. 
  • [40:00] Thoughts on how a sabbatical can be achieved for business owners. 

Listen to the Podcast Interview