“High performers are clear on their intentions for themselves, their social world, their skills, and their service to others.”

Brendon Burchard, High Performance Habits

We looked into clarity around self in our last article. In the following we’ll examine having clarity around the remaining three areas of “The Future Four”: social, skills, and service.

Social

According to the author of High Performance Habits, Brendon Burchard, high performers are clear on “how they want to interact with others.” How high performers get to that clarity is by thinking about how they want to show up as a person before a social interaction.

There are two parts to seeking clarity in one’s social world, and these work together. The first is to consider your legacy. Much like Covey describes Begin with the End in Mind, high performers consider how they  want the people they love and serve to remember them in the future. They form a vision around a preferred future state where they are respected and appreciated.

With this vision in mind, the second part is to act in a way that will lead to fulfillment of the vision. Before a social interaction, such as a meeting, phone call, or dinner out, high performers ask questions like:

“How can I be a good person or leader in this upcoming situation?

What will the other person(s) need?

What kind of mood and tone do I want to set?”

Brendon Burchard, High Performance Habits

By asking these questions, we set our intention, and we end up creating an experience consciously.

Skills

“…high performers are very clear about the skill sets they need to develop now to win in the future.”

Brendon Burchard, High Performance Habits

Burchard notes that high performers also focus their learning on what he calls their primary field of interest, or PFI for short. Whether it’s a technical skill or a hobby, they make it their PFI and set out to master it instead of setting out to become a generalist.

The author presents the example of music. A high performer doesn’t get a little instruction on all things music – singing, playing guitar, joining an orchestra. They instead pick one PFI, say a five-string guitar, and intentionally learn. The high performer finds a master teacher and schedules regular time for practice. They are focused “more on skill building than on casual exploration.”

High performers have a vision for their future and identify the skills needed to achieve that vision. Then, they “obsessively develop those skills.”

Service

“…high performers care deeply about the difference they are going to make for others and in the future in general, so they cater today’s activities to delivering those contributions with heart and elegance.”

Brendon Burchard, High Performance Habits

High performers ask, “How can I serve people with excellence and make an extraordinary contribution to the world?”

What we are trying to avoid by asking this question is “becoming disconnected from the future and [our] contribution to it.” When we become disconnected, we underperform. Three areas to focus on in order to add value, inspire and make a difference are: relevance, differentiation, and excellence.

Relevance here means working on what matters the most now. The high performer doesn’t hang onto a project they like working on if the project is not relevant. Once relevant work is identified, the high performer figures out how to deliver it.

Differentiation here means examining how their unique skills and talents can add more value than others can.

Excellence here is rooted in an internal standard, one that continually asks, “How can I deliver beyond what’s expected? How can I serve with excellence?”

Underperformers focus on “self over service.” They ask themselves what the minimum effort is to get by (and not in a quest for efficiency, mind you), and what they themselves want now. The underperformer does not seek to serve others, but rather to serve themselves.

tl;dr

The four areas high performers seek clarity in are: vision for their future self, social interactions, skills needed, and how to serve others with excellence.

engineer your life

  • Take a few minutes to think about an upcoming social interaction – a meeting, phone call, a gathering of friends. Set an intention for that interaction consistent with how you want people to remember you in the future.
  • Think about what skills you’ll need to develop to fulfill your vision. Create a curriculum to learn or master the skill needed. Set aside time in your calendar to work on building these skills.
  • Ask yourself how you can work on what’s relevant, how you can apply your unique skills, and how to go about your work with excellence.