We typically work to about 50% of our potential – that’s a lot of wasted potential! Why? Because we like being comfortable. We stick with what we know. We’re busy.
Your growth lies outside your comfort zone
Think of people who seem to step into new opportunity and challenge with ease while others struggle to get out of their comfort zone, even though they say they want things to be different. Where do you sit on that spectrum?
“A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.” Winston S. Churchill
Tap into your potential
Your incremental performance lies in three interconnected areas of opportunity:
1. Improve how you lead you
The more effective you are, the more effective you can be for others. This is about improving your productivity, your skills/competencies, as well as your self-awareness/emotional EQ.
What are you doing to improve you? Against what benchmarks? For what purpose?
2. Progress your relationships, connections and networks
The biggest predicator to your career success is your ability to connect with others and build open networks¹.
As Seth Godin says “All of us are smarter than any of us.”
I’ve been working with a client who believes she deserves a promotion. She’s also believed her results should speak for themselves. While her base results are great, she’s now appreciating she doesn’t have the strength of relationships and influence across her peer level and more senior levels of leadership. Staying under the radar has kept her safe but it hasn’t positioned her for a tap on the shoulder.
What are you doing to build your network? What ideas and knowledge could you be tapping into? Where are your biggest opportunities to build and leverage relationships?
3. Improve results that matter
Driving next level results relies on you owning and driving change that matters, rather than simply contributing to it. It’s about stepping into spaces where you create and deliver, rather than just being a part of the team.
What are you causing? What change are you leading?
“If somebody offers you an amazing opportunity but you are not sure you can do it, say yes – then learn how to do it later!” — Richard Branson
Bringing it all together
Your next level results lie in three inter-connected areas of opportunity: improving you; your relationships; and your ability to drive change that matters. Seizing opportunity requires courage – the courage to step outside your comfort zone and out of your own way – into your growth and development. Building your brand relies on each of these areas functioning effectively.
How are you going to tap into your potential and next level results? I’d love to know.
¹ https://www.forbes.com/sites/michaelsimmons/2015/01/15/this-is-the-1-predictor-of-career-success-according-to-network-science/#1df34af6e829
