When we develop habits that help balance learning and performing, we can finally reach our boldest aspirations.
Are you always racing to check tasks off a list? Do you spend most of your time trying to minimize mistakes? Would you rather walk over hot coals than get feedback?
These are all signs of chronic performance. While it may seem like minimizing mistakes is a reasonable use of our time or that appearing decisive is a wise career strategy, these habits can have a devastating impact on our skills, confidence, jobs, and personal lives.
Chronic performance could be the reason you might be feeling stagnant in some area of your life. You might be working more hours or putting more effort into tasks, yet you never seem to get ahead. Life feels like a never-ending game of catch-up. That’s chronic performance—throwing more energy at tasks and problems yet staying at the same level of effectiveness.
The key to emerging from the chronic performance trap is to shift our focus from simply doing to learning while doing. This means not only changing our mindset but also developing habits and strategies that support growth. We can separate habits into three categories.
1. Proactive habits are those we put in place to develop a particular skill or body of knowledge. Expert performers don’t just wait for setbacks or challenges to feed their learning journeys. They are always proactively working to stretch beyond their current capabilities.
Linda Rabbitt follows a habit of daily reading. “I read or I listen to podcasts, or TED Talks or whatever, and whenever there’s something that particularly strikes me, I send it to people who I think could benefit from it. So, every morning, from like six-thirty to maybe seven-thirty, I’m reading. I wasn’t schooled in business, but I have been a student of business, and I’ve read everything I can read about succession planning and so forth.”
2. Responsive habits are triggered by events around us…
Are you struggling at work? These 3 habits can help you get back on track
