There has been a lot of interesting discussion and literature written in the past (and currently) regarding the ramp up to peak performance and sustain your baseline performance over a long period of time. Both are different in their approach, human mindset, and human physiological makeup.
First, peak performance. A quick story… When I was competing on the worldwide stage of the Remax World Long Drive Championship (RWLDC) many years ago, there was an aspect of training both mentally and physically leading up to the event (which required many stages of qualification) to ensure that performance was optimal to beat my competitors. What I saw in the field, and discussing with other athletes, was that each person’s “ramp-up” was different based on their own philosophies, body types, and mindset makeups. So, there was not a “one size-fits all” approach. However, there were some standard principles and concepts that applied to each athlete.
One of those standard principals was timing the ramp-up. Athletes often work backwards from the event date to create a formal/informal game plan to make sure they peak at the right time. Peak performance does not last over long term. Peak performance is created from a deliberate ramp-up of the body and mind to perform for a short amount of time. Performance at this level is not sustainable.
Often to get to peak performance, there are aspects of curiosity and experimentation to find out what will work for that individual. In other words, one has to find out the personal recipe that works. My curiosity and experimentation for the RWLDC led me to a different training method (recipe) that increased my club head and ball speeds quite a bit. It led to my longest distances in competition ever! From those years of competition, I learned a lot about peak performance, which I try to carry over in the professional workplace and career.
Let’s move away from athletics and discuss briefly about obtaining and applying peak performance in the workplace. For example, say there is a project on the books that is someone’s responsibility. There should be (and probably is) certain, critical milestones that need peak performance effort of a few people to make sure the effort is a success. Taking that same concept for training for an athletic event mentioned above, one needs to know both what the end outcome and time frame is to properly work backwards and implement a peak performance plan.
A good program manager for example will know, and have some idea on personnel makeup of the team, what each member is capable of, and what it takes to deliver whatever the result is. They may be able to orchestrate helping people get to peak performance by setting expectations, offering tips, support, and resources (the recipe!). Once that deliverable(s) or outcome(s) is/are hit, then the individuals will then ramp back down to the sustainable level. In other words, peak performance is cyclical. It goes up, comes down, goes back up, then down. The Program Manager / leader can help strategically orchestrate the cycles knowing both their people and project deeply.
The other concept is long-term performance. Meaning that it could be over 1 year, 3 years, 5 years, or a career. How does an individual prepare for the long haul while maintaining some level of sustainable performance? In other words, some baseline. It is a difficult one to achieve, and one that is influenced by, but not limited to: leadership vision, and by the internal personal makeup of the individual affected (health, life experiences, physical state, mental state). For example, if a leader can breakdown a long-term vision into bite sized chunks, then there is more likely a chance that the individuals working in the organization see the result as more attainable. Now, if it is not broken down into bite sized chunks, there is a chance that motivation will drop with the team. They will feel that the end is way too far out of reach…not attainable. They may ask themselves “why am I working so hard at this very moment, when this is so far down the road. I can wait awhile and then turn it on later”. When in fact the leader is trying to generate that baseline performance 100% of the time throughout the year. Bite sized chunks that are thought out and created with a purpose, make a big difference.
One thing that I am starting to personally experiment with is the concept of mini-competitions, friendly competitions, and generating the environment for true camaraderie (sense of belonging to something and developing better bonds/relationships) to sustain motivation over the long term. Sometimes a friendly competition between staff is good, and sometimes staff forming closer bonds / camaraderie is good too. The approach to creating long term sustainability depends on many factors. Culture has a lot to do with approach. One must know what type of culture from the top down is being created. What is expected and acceptable.
During times of COVID19 and other challenging times, both peak performance and sustained performance can be tested. Routines have been knocked out; game plans needed to be changed. There is an aspect of flexibility and anti-fragility that an individual person and organizations must understand and develop. Those characteristics of flexibility and anti-fragility are stronger in some than others. Leader(s) can educate and instill some of those qualities to a certain extent. I do feel though at the end of the day, it is up to the individual person internally to buy-into and live by those concepts. During challenging times outside of people’s control (like a COVID pandemic), realize that there is another layer to contend with. Extra empathy, flexibility, and anti-fragility during times like this needs to be part of the “recipe” for peak and sustained performance.