Two actions that will accelerate your performance

bikePay-off: you’ll learn faster if you maximise these two things

Investment: 3 minutes

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You might find this video amuses you like it did me:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Dj196t5Sb0

It’s amusing, but what’s more important, is that it’s analogous to how we get ahead and succeed at anything.

I don’t mean that the cyclist reduced resistance, although that’s worth thinking about too. (Remember most resistance we feel isn’t really there – our minds create it and therefore our minds could remove it. You could always just choose to think different thoughts that remove resistance and focus on the activity that moves your forwards).

But more specifically I’m referring to two things he did that make all the difference between those who succeed and those who don’t.

This applies to learning and performing at anything, but since most of my readers are interested in learning how to develop business (or ‘sell’), let’s apply it directly to that.

To learn, improve, get ahead and win, you need these two things:

 

1. You must want the outcome strongly enough. You need drive.

Developing sales drive(Here’s a free workbook to help you increase your sales drive  – your desire to learn to sell)

You must either want a specific outcome strongly enough that learning how you’ll get it becomes a must.

Or you must want the outcome of simply being competent at whatever it is you’re learning. (These are the main two drivers, but there are two more which you could tap into and you don’t want to overlook – I’ll walk you through them in the workbook here).

To learn to sell, there must be a ‘sale’ ahead that you absolutely want or need to make (because you believe the rewards for doing so are desirable). There must be a specific outcome you want that requires you to win the hearts, minds or co-operation of other people.

Or, you must simply have a strong desire to become good at winning people over and frequently earning their co-operation. A string to your bow to help you tackle whatever the rest of your life throws at you, if you like.

Either of these increase your drive to learn to sell (and there are plenty more).

The cyclist in the video clearly wanted the outcome of getting ahead in order to win.

 

2. You must be willing to commit to experimenting with new actions and activity.

Experimenting is the key word here. If you don’t approach it with an experimentation mindset, and instead think that “learning + application = positive result” you’re going to get frustrated and perhaps even give up when things don’t go to plan.

But “I’m experimenting” is a useful way to think, because you’re not just open to making mistakes but you’re expecting them and see them as progress towards your desired outcome. Seems kind of obvious, but in my experience, most people take the route of frustration because of their unrealistic expectations.

The formula you want is “(experimentation + awareness + feedback) x (as many iterations as it takes) = positive result.”

And doing that requires that you schedule to put your attention on to the task in hand frequently enough.

As you experiment and feel your way forwards, you’ll find what works. Then you’ll do more of it and enjoy what begins to happen.

The cyclist in the video, armed with his goal in mind, no doubt experimented and found a way that worked. And did you notice how his secret spread to the guy on the moped at the end?

Those who take the time to maximise these two requirements accelerate their learning, performance and results.

Those who lead a team and help their people to maximise these two (by creating the culture, the right messaging, the right example, and the right circumstances to maximise them) see accelerated learning, performance and results.

Those who don’t fall behind with the rest, pedalling harder and harder only to come in at 5th, 6th, or 7th place. (Unless you’re on a moped of course. And you can get one of those here.)

Do you think someone in your network might like to read this?

If you found this post useful then perhaps some people in your network might like it too? Please consider helping it reach them with a like and a share – many thanks!

 

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