A Recipe for High Performance

Recently, I told you about the consistency needed to fuel high performance. I want to get into that a little more by showcasing one of the highest performers I know – my car!

 

It’s true. I demand a lot of my vehicles. I have only had this car for a little more than two years, and I have already put 68,000 miles on it. That means that every four to six weeks, I’m getting an oil change at the dealership, and once or twice a week I’m filling the tank with gas.

 

See, my car doesn’t just perform on its own without a little TLC. If I didn’t consistently stay on top of those oil changes, and the other associated fluid levels, tire rotations, etc. who knows where my wheels would be? The thing is, I know I need my car to be there for me – because my “on-the-go” would come to an infuriating screeching halt if my car breaks down.

 

I realize what it takes for it to remain, through all the wear and tear and miles, in tip-top shape.

 

As much attention as I give to my “performer of the road” – assuring that all its features and functions continue to work as effectively as the day I drove it off the lot – I need to give the same TLC to my “other performers”; my clients, direct reports, employees, and colleagues. They too, require upkeep and fuel to work with optimal effectiveness and efficiency.

 

Regularly touching base and providing valuable feedback is to employees what gas is to our car – it fuels them to achieve more. Try to do it once or twice a week.

 

Intentional dialogue offered more than once a year at a performance evaluation is to employees what oil changes are to a vehicle – it allows for more focused discussion about what’s working great, what needs improvement, and what opportunities exist.

 

The former is brief and casual; poking your head in their office or walking to their workstation for a quick “hello”, “how’s it going on that project?”, or “your presentation yesterday was brilliant!”.

 

The latter is a bit more structured; a 15-30 minute quarterly or as-needed conversation that allows for you to provide more personalized feedback and recognition, privately address any deficiencies, and allow an open mic for their needs.

 

Remember: You want to be the anti-performance evaluation. Everyone I’ve ever talked to has had, at best, a lackluster review of his or her own annual performance review. That’s because they’re typically very generic and meaningless episodes. These “evaluations” don’t provide any of the tools necessary to help rev up employees’ metaphorical “engines” – the validation and recognition for their hard work, for one. Nor do they really offer anything that helps us to gauge our personal efforts against the expectations of the company.

 

If we expect high performance from individual employees or the entire team, let’s give them adequate fuel and maintenance.

 

There is no time like the present to devote resources and invest your energies toward maintaining and optimizing the efforts of your team.