Tanya Semerad 0:00
Hi I'm Tanya Semerad, former lawyer and business leader turned coach, and you're listening to high performance made simple, the show for people who want more clarity, influence and wellbeing. So you can live and lead more courageously unlock your full potential, and inspire others to do the same. Let's do this.
Tanya Semerad 0:49
Hello, my friend, you've made it. It's so nice to have you here. In this episode, I'll reveal what high performance really is and how to get it. And why gaining clarity is the first step you'll need to take. I won't leave you in the lurch either, because I will also tell you what clarity is really about and how you can start gaining more of it today. High performance is not a secret. It's been studied and seen in truly high performing people, in organizations and in families around the world. And it's been happening for decades now get strangely enough, it's not the shiny results and the accumulation of power and money that necessarily indicate high performance. Sure, it can be a result of high performance. But it's not necessarily because you are a high performer. In fact, I bet that you know, people who have the shiny results in life, but they barely lifted a finger to earn it for themselves. Am I right? Or am i right? So focusing on that shiny result you want is misplaced focus, and will have you in a state of constantly grinding, constantly striving for high performance. And that feeling of self worth and never quite arriving at high performance and that self satisfaction that I know you want. I heard the call to produce this podcast because most of the content out there is focused on that when that result, the promotion, the new client, owning a home, being the top financial performer, and calling those results high performance and the people who produce those results, high performers, which is not only the incorrect place to focus. But there's actually not that much guidance out there on how to be how to become that high performer in the first place. Even personal story is told by top performers and high performers gloss over the gargantuan effort required in the smaller actions they've taken. Because what has proven high performance is that it's not the big moments in life that create high performance. But it's the smaller, repeated actions, the great habits that create high performers, and these high performance outcomes, that people don't often talk about these more personal, private, inner work that they do the inner work that goes on day in day out because it's either too personal, terribly obvious to them, or too simple and basic to mention or make a big deal of. But this is why we have so many people constantly striving and never arriving. So this is why I made high performance Made Simple to reveal that work that high performers are doing behind the scenes when they're alone. When they're in private conversations, I want to reveal the actual things they challenge themselves on every day, those habits that a true high performer embodies. And that inevitably results in that shiny, exciting experience that I know you want. So let's get started. We start with the full definition of high performance. High performance is defined with a meaning as well as a feeling. High Performance feels like full engagement, joy and confidence that comes from giving your absolute best. And its meaning is defined as succeeding beyond standard norms consistently over the long term, while maintaining positive well being and relationships. Now I'm a certified high performance coach with the High Performance Institute and this is how we and the world's highest performers define high performance for the avoidance of doubt. We also have that feeling because high performers, yeah, they've been studied and when they speak about high performance and what it feels like how they know that in it is when they have that feeling. So you get a double reference point here, the definition and the feeling. And this could all be very obvious to my friend. But what I know isn't so obvious is how to achieve each of these elements in the definition. At the same time, let alone maintain that feeling of high performance. Because just when you get everything organized, all those plates are spinning, or the balls are in the air, something seems to give way, maybe it's your knee, maybe something at work or at home, do you rails, you and you're knocked back. Yeah, you break a few plates, you drop a few balls, you're set back a few squares, you lose progress, alignment with people, maybe you lose money, maybe you've lost the opportunity. High performance is a big deal. And I know there's a lot going on in that definition. So let's break it down. So we can create a more systematic understanding and approach to high performance that you can be even more intentional about doing every day. The first part of that definition is succeeding beyond standard norms consistently over the long term. Now, you would be most familiar with this part of the definition, because it tends to be the bit that people and organizations laser focus on, it's directly linked to getting money in the business bank account after roll. So standard norms are, of course targets, their KPIs, the expectations, standard norms, or the status quo, they're greater industry standards. And it's also the stuff you've been saying and doing personally, for a long time, your standards, your standard operating procedures. So to succeed beyond your standard norms, you have to go beyond them. And to go beyond them, it would make sense that you have to go beyond what you've already been doing. You've got to go beyond what comes naturally or ordinarily to you. This means you've got to leave space for new ideas, you've got to leave space to try new things, you've got to leave space to challenge yourself, to challenge others as well to expect more of themselves to but how often is leaving this space, part of your daily routine.
Tanya Semerad 7:29
Not often I bet when people tend to give up is when they try once they fail, and they feel humiliated. So they don't try again. Well, they tried 10 times and it still didn't work out for them. But the truth is, you've got to do this consistently, you've got to leave space for these things. Not just once a year or once a month, you've got to do it everyday, high performers don't challenge themselves, just every now and then they've made challenge a daily habit, something they protect time for every day. And you can too, but only you know what that looks like for you the definition of high performance, or meet you where you're at right now, personally and professionally. We are whole people. After all, it will meet your organization where it's at right now. It'll meet your family where you guys are at right now. So let it where you are now is your starting point. And going to the next level is your indication of high performance and over time, yes, even with some setbacks, the trend will be one of positive change and overall improvement. We all have bad days, sometimes bad week, sometimes bad month may be a really crappy quarter. But overall that consistency over the longer term, we will then satisfy the second part of that first half of the definition, which is succeeding beyond standard norms consistently over the long term. Yes, we want to be able to step back and see that overall trend of improvement and progress. So we've looked at that first half, succeeding beyond standard norms consistently over the long term. So let's look at the second half of the definition of high performance. Now, the part we don't usually give anywhere near as much importance to until it's too late, which is while maintaining positive well being and relationships. First, we must get to a state of positive wellbeing before we can maintain it right before we can even think about maintaining something positively Well, positive well being is about how we rest. It's about how we play. It's about quality time with your family. It's about your health. It's about how fit you are. It's about your mental, physical, emotional, spiritual well being it's the three one 160 degree perspective of wellness, it's knowing these things. And it's also about committing to these things committing to the activities that give you this ability to be positively well, like those passion projects, like eating nourishing food and being around nourishing people, like exploring, getting enough sleep. And of course, play time having fun. Yeah, you are allowed to have fun. In fact, it's required to be a high performer because people and organizations who applaud and reward exhaustion, working late working through weekends, working through Christmas and other religious observations, not only lose creativity, and therefore the ability to be innovative, but they lose the very people, they need to hit their targets. They lose them to other organizations, to competitors, or worse, they lose the people themselves. There are lawyers in my extended friendship group who, who are no longer with us, they're no longer with us on Earth, because they felt the pressure to work 24/7 And be a top performer. This is one of the many reasons I became a high performance coach, not a top performance coach, I want to show people how they can have that successful self expression in their career, and in their personal life. It's that 360 degree wellness, that mental, emotional, physical and spiritual well being because we need that we aren't human doings and the stuff we do and say, We're human beings, are human beings. So once you get clear on what positive well being looks like, and feels like for you, at this stage of your life, and at this stage in your career, remember that you're a human being first and foremost, flesh and blood strong, yet delicate. So you will need more wellbeing than you might initially allow yourself for. Keep that in mind. You'll probably even have some self criticism and some judgment about it too. Oh, well, I shouldn't need that. I've been fine with that until now. I mean, yeah, maybe you have been fine. And this is the level you're on right now. Do you love where you're at? Well, if you do, then you don't have to listen anymore. No, I'm kidding. You do have to listen. Because just to maintain where you're at, you have to go to the next level, because everything is changing around you. So get clear on what you need to do to be well, so that you can be more deliberate about doing well being so that you can do it today. And you guessed it, high performers are deliberate. They're obsessively, they're obsessively intentional about doing this stuff. Seems too obvious to mention. Right? Then, of course, we have the tail end of the definition of high performance, and it lets me save the very best bit for lost relationships. You've got to maintain positive well being and relationships. Relationships are personal, and they're professional. They're with people, you know, and they're with people you don't know. It's your operating system. It's your values, your reference point for how you interact with other people. You need to know how you want to interact with people authentically as your true and your best self, and do it consistently. Again, let this definition meet you where you're at right now. Are you a leader? Well, what's your relationship to leadership? Like? How do you lead other people in your team? What's your relationship like with the people in your team? How about across your organization? How about in your industry? What are the guiding principles and practices for being a leader that people want to follow that people feel inspired by? When you're clear on your leadership relationship, you know who you need to become, to go to your next level, to have deeper impact, the impact you need to achieve your mission to leave the legacy you want to be remembered by not as someone who was just reacting to stuff around them. But as that initiator. Perhaps you're a leader in your family, someone that your family members look up to you feel responsible for and accountable to them. You want to be a great role model to support them financially, emotionally, mentally, and also keep their spirits up. Are you responsible for leading you Friends? How are you showing them other more positive and meaningful ways to spend their time and energy? How do you challenge them to be better to tap into their potential? We need more friends like that. And finally, the less of this relationship, but the most important one you have is the relationship with yourself. We can't control other people, and we should never want to, but you are in charge of the relationship with yourself. How do you relate to yourself? How do you speak to yourself? What did you say to yourself when you looked in the mirror this morning? How long? Have you been saying that thing to yourself? Have you been saying it since you were 15? And in your 30s and 40s? You're still saying the same thing? Maybe in your 50s and 60s? Do you ever swear at yourself when you stuff up? Do you say things to yourself that you wouldn't say to your worst enemy? Okay, let's wrap up this definition. So we can move on high performance means to succeed beyond standard norms consistently over the long term, while maintaining positive well being and relationships. It's the feeling of full engagement in your work and life, full joy, full confidence from giving your absolute best. So that's the definition and the feeling of high performers. But how do we become high performers? What do we need to do, Tanya? Well, just as we have a definition of failing, we also have a recipe, a recipe for high performance that contains five essential ingredients, five essential habits. The first habit is clarity, you've got to gain, maintain, and give clarity. Second, energy, you got to generate energy, you don't just have the energy you woke up with energy is also about elevating your mood, what do you like to be around, you know, third, productivity, what are you producing, protecting time for and focusing on what and who matter
Tanya Semerad 17:19
that is productivity. For demonstrate more courage, you got to be out of your comfort zone more, you got to live and lead outside of where you're comfortable. You have to cultivate self confidence to be a high performer. And five influence, you have to connect more deeply with people, you got to live and lead with that clear purpose and effect positive change. That's influence. The point is that you will experience high performance when you put these high performance habits to work in your career and in your life. When you get these five habits really get them clarity, energy, productivity, courage and influence, you will experience the high performance you're looking for, you will experience that progress, meaning and full on joy that you deeply want. So the next step, and the first of the High Performance habit is to gain clarity, and clarity. My friend doesn't just come to you when you've hit a big milestone in life. It doesn't come from your parents or caregivers. It can't come from what your friends your colleagues are doing, either. Only people who don't have clarity, or know how to get it will tell you that clarity comes from these outside experiences in life. But the truth is, clarity has to come from inside of you from inside experiences. How? Let me explain. clarity comes from insight. And insight comes from intentionally gaining an accurate and deep understanding of yourself. By accurate I'm talking about your dreams and goals, not someone else's dreams and goals, not someone else's pressures or expectations of you. And by deep understanding, I'm talking about intentionally taking the time to gain meaning and perspective about yourself about who you're being in your relationships, who you're being at work and and who you're becoming in life. This is another reason I became a coach to give people these opportunities they might not otherwise know to make for themselves, so that they can gain these deep and meaningful insights. Having a coach is an unfair advantage and high performers have made sure they've prioritized and protected opportunities for these moments, opportunities to gain deep insight moment As to dig deep to go treasure hunting, digging, for jewels of clarity, not waiting, anxiously anticipating those big aha moments or for those heavy milestones to drop out of the sky. I mean, that just sounds dangerous. When you think about it, though, really serious here, milestones in life often create more pressure, confusion, and difficult decisions that you need to make. With milestones, you're not more clear, we're just juggling more, you're more tired, you feel like you've got more to lose you to get insurance plan. So those things that premium just keeps going up, you feel more trapped by those past decisions and the expectation to keep things up, you're keeping your head up above water. And that's not clarity. That's chaos. So we start with clarity in this podcast on highperformance. Because you need to know yourself, you need to know your values, you need to know your habits, you need to know your priorities, you need to know all these things before you go marching headfirst into anything. And if you already had first marching on in, that's fine. Listen to these episodes on clarity. So you gain this perspective and can apply yourself accordingly. Whether that's Elevate, pivot stop, start something, you will know the answer, you will get that clarity. The alternative is to be a happy go lucky person. And I envy you if that's your personality type. However, if you're the person who is driven, wants to serve more greatly and leave a legacy you're proud of, then gain clarity. And even if you've gained clarity just a few years ago, or you had a big moment of clarity, when you were in high school, maybe maybe had a moment of clarity when you were in university, or when you had your first child or when you first got promoted to leader, even if that's happened for you recently gain more clarity today, because chances are things have changed since then, look around you. Are you in the same place? The people around you the same people? Are they exactly the same? Probably not. They probably had some things happen. The economy, the world is constantly shifting and changing. And you know, I'm stressing this point for good reason. So make gaining and maintaining clarity, your priority. People who hope to get clarity from their outside external experiences in life, they aren't confident people, how can you be confident when you're leaving so much to chance? People without clarity are, in my opinion, the most insecure people out there. They're relying on other people to get back to them. They're waiting to be told what to do, how to act, what to say, who to like, how they should feel about stuff that happens in the news. They're hoping those big glaring brands they're wearing, say more about them than they know of themselves. I have to say it. People without clarity are spread thin, especially in a work context, people without clarity as spread thin, they're going to every meeting, they're trying to please people and show their face everywhere because they're unsure exactly where they're going to have the biggest impact. So they spread themselves thin, they're dipping into everything that they don't necessarily know how to do. We all know some of those people they have FOMO Fear Of Missing Out is a real thing for grownups moreso than their kids, their kids don't care. So without clarity, then you are someone who is more likely to chop and change your decisions. You don't back yourself, how can you back yourself. You don't make decisions quickly enough. You miss out on opportunities that come your way. And the opportunities that you could be making for yourself is just how serious this is. But when you have clarity, my friend, you show up authentically, which really is just a fancy way of saying that you show people the real you and you absolutely own yourself. It's attractive and it's comforting and leadership especially. There's no pretending, no acting, no wondering how much of yourself to show people. How much of yourself to show people, for example, when you first meet them. If you're awkward with new people or you get awkward in challenging conversations, or you want to set the bar higher and create a new brand for yourself, then you are in the right place because you're going to get this kind of confidence, this kind of knowing with me. Yes, I have figured it out for myself. And I've made huge changes in my life like getting over redundancy when I was a lawyer during the global financial crisis. I complete athlete reinvented my career from lawyer to marketing professional. I started businesses, I was nominated for awards, I made massive relationship changes, like breakups and incredible tune ups. I also got my health back after overworking. I mean, I was sleeping under my desk at work because I was so busy and neglecting that second half of the definition of high performance. I thought I was a high performer. I was getting a lot of billables in, but I wasn't really because I couldn't sustain my mission. I didn't know that during this time I was getting I was developing an autoimmune disease, I had no idea. My skin was cracking and bleeding, my hair was falling out. I looked like The Walking Dead. So yes, I have done this for me. And I've personally helped hundreds of people get this kind of clarity, get this kind of Korea, relationship and routine clarity through one to one and team coaching sessions. So here's the idea. Instead of collecting milestones, I want you to collect clarity, jewels, I want you to think of clarity as jewels, individual jewels of clarity, and these jewels, my friend are collectible. So the more you collect, the more clarity you get. Here are some examples of the individual jewels of clarity that we will collect together. Here we go. Knowing who you are right now, that is a duel. Knowing who the best of you is, that's a really good deal that one knowing who you need to become in order to level up. Now that is a megajoule, you need to handle that one. Knowing how the best of you will interact with other people, ie have those relationships lead, how you create alignment. This is personal and professional. Now, this is advanced level bling, bling, it's bling bling bling Ling is another one, knowing your dreams, and knowing which of those dreams our goals for this year. Those are very shining jewels.
Tanya Semerad 27:19
Another one, knowing which practices create success for you, and which ones aren't. Because your habits my friend, they're either supporting you or they're sabotaging you. So these practices jewels are very rare jewels. Indeed, they're the ones that turn heads, they get people to follow you they follow your lead. Remember, the game here is to collect as many jewels as you can. Because you know, the more jewels you collect, the more clarity you will get, the better your assessments will be of opportunities. And the faster that you can make decisions about them while being true to you. And actually being happy with the life you're choosing. The modules you collect, the more you can become someone who makes a market for themselves. Someone who isn't waiting and wasting time, the modules you collect, the more you can be someone who has deep and meaningful relationships instead of someone who kind of skates on the surface of life with people having that general chit chat. vapid vein conversations, gossiping about people, the weather, the news, you could also stop being someone who is avoiding relationships altogether, was avoid avoiding leadership. Because with clarity, you're not afraid of the unknown anymore. You're clear on who you are and how you want to have relationships, how you want to lead. This is very empowering stuff. So because leadership is a type of relationship, and when you get clear on that you become more inspirational, it becomes more of a pull a gravitational pull as opposed to having to push people into stuff. You create alignment more easily and keep it you energize people on a whole new level to take action. They take action at work, and they take action at home. Wouldn't that be nice? So let's get ready to rumble my friend because your challenge should you wish to accept it is to listen to the next episode on clarity right now because you will gain self clarity and understand who you are, who the best of you is and who you need to become to level up. So go now and collect your first few jewels in the next episode on self clarity and then modules in the next with relationship clarity. And then on gold clarity in the next one. Keep going. I have a whole clarity batch ready for you right now before we move on to the next high performance habit energy. We can't amp you up until we're clear on who you are. Thank you so much for being here and supporting the high performance made simple podcast. Now if you think that you know someone who might benefit from hearing this, please send it to them. In fact, share it with three people choose three people that you think are brilliant and want to see razzle dazzle even more in life. To catch the latest from me. You can follow me on LinkedIn at Tanya Semerad and hit me up on Instagram. I've also got Tik Tok. That one's new for me at Tanya underscore high performance and I look forward to tuning in with you soon. Ciao for now.
Transcribed by https://otter.ai
