Do you know what fueled the Toronto Raptors’ rise as NBA champions and an intoxicating winning culture? The belief in both player and staff potential and not solely relying on past performance.
I am sports enthusiast, a football fanatic turned, basketball junkie. It is to the extent that my son turns on the TV and would say, “basketball again?” Or at least he used to, up until early March. Recently, my daughter said, “I thought basketball was cancelled daddy!”, as I woefully watched the rerun of last year’s champion series. Like many runs to victory, I am enamored how victories are won, how inner psyche and mental toughness triumphs over raw skills.
Do you want to improve your performance? Believing in your potential and that of others is key. Sir John Whitmore, coaching pioneer, uses the mathematical equation PERFORMANCE = POTENTIAL – INTERFERENCE. The message is clear, to boost performance, to win, kick aside interference and exploit maximum potential. Remember, Attitude determines Altitude.
This performance equation can be applied to all aspects of life – career, self-development, family, and business. You can exploit potential when you see that the organization you work for could do better, when a friend appears sad or in distress, when your child needs encouragement or when make your next hiring decision. These are times to kick fallacies and inhibitions to the curve. These are the moments to elevate and tap-in.
The Raptors, led by the stalwart and perceptive leadership of Masai Ujiri and, finals MVP Kawhi Leonard killer instinct and even keel attitude, gave rise to transformational performance. Nick Nurse was a talented and unproven Coach, yet his creativity reigned supreme. Pascal Siakam only started basketball as a teenager but emerged into a game changing Allstar. Fred VanVleet, an undrafted phenom, played his heart out and earned a finals MVP vote. Kyle Lowry’s, ‘never give up on a play!’, unwavering leadership and command became the difference maker. Potential rose to the top like cream and the “never too high, never too low” team mantra drove heighten awareness and kept interference at bay. Outthink. Out hustle. Out play. The inner game triumphed.
To boost performance, look into your inner self and, discover the will power that triumphs over the multitude of distractions. Faced with a number of challenges brought on by this pandemic, the question is, how will we make it through these uncertain times? The truth is, it depends. How well we come out on the other side of this depends on collaborative leadership. It depends on us putting aside our misconceptions, standing side-by-side and ask, how do we work together to create a championship culture? A culture that actively seeks out potential. A culture where we hold each other accountable to display our best selves. If we do anything less, we allow space for interference. As interference grows, performance suffers, and the equation becomes skewed and heavily negative. This is not a winning formula. Even though uncertainty may bring fear and hesitation, we must give way to our true human intuitions.
Ready to boost your performance? Here are 3 things you can do.
- Step 1: Conceive it! Think about a goal you have in mind and conduct this exercise. Close your eyes, take a deep breath, hold, until you have to let go. Repeat it 3 times. Then visualize it, lock your eyes in. Hold this focus for 5 minutes and get into that zone.
- Step 2: Believe it! Once images of that goal are locked in, immerse yourself in it, so it becomes part of you. Part of this is sharing your story with someone else, sort of like your marketing campaign. If you experience any fear, share it with the people who are closest to you who will hold you accountable.
- Step 3: Achieve it! The target is now cemented and it’s about executing. Put a plan in place, be SMART. While bumps and bruises are inevitable along the way, find cheerleaders (fans) who will be in your corner.
The time to enhance performance is now. Why not start by joining Brothers Who Care and our allies? We are an allyship group who collaborate on knowledge sharing and philanthropic initiatives to make a difference. Sharing! Learning! Acting! We do this because WE CARE!
