High Performance: Lessons from the Best on Becoming Your Best

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There are countless such stories of people who fought against the odds and challenged the possibilities that life gave them. They were no different from you and me. They had the same hot, red blood running through them, the hunger for opportunity and the greed to grow. This is a conversation about personal growth, overcoming the darkest moments and moving to a brighter future. That’s very interesting. Would you actually sit down with, say, American football players at the peak of their careers and read the Tao Te Ching (or the Daodejing, as it’s sometimes spelled) together? And don't even get me started on the "high-performance" part. I was expecting some kind of secret formula for success, but instead, I got a list of habits that anyone with half a brain could come up with on their own. I mean, really, who needs a book to tell them to set goals and prioritize their time? I think Frankl’s book is a reminder of the fragility of life, and the limited time we have to explore our potential. If we don’t organise our life in a purposeful way to explore what we are capable of, we become some version that is less than. And the trade winds of the world will push us away from our potential.

The Talent Code : A book that explains the science of high performance and how to achieve it by training your brain and body We—and when I say ‘we,’ I’m talking about my partnership with Coach Carroll, the head coach of the Seattle Seahawks—we’ve found that there are five core pillars in the psychology of excellence. They are: self-discovery, mental skills, psychological framework, recovery and mindfulness. It’s all here. Find the books, hear from authors and discuss content with other like-minded people! Throughout the book, there are high performance pit stops laying out practical activities you can do to put some of the ideas described in the book into action. For example, reflecting on how you manage your time and how to become better at it. It’s time to put what you’ve learned into practice

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I love the High Performance podcast and listen to it fairly consistently (!); my issue with the book is that about 90% of the material has already been shared on the podcast. There are some new anecdotes from Jake and Damian personally but with respect to the pair of them, they aren’t why I listen/read. She explains why it’s not just our talents and abilities that bring us success, the key is in how we approach different parts of life. Carol defines the different approaches as “fixed” and “growth” mindset. This book delves into the techniques we can use to develop a growth mindset and how to combat the constraints of a fixed mindset. I read the book pretty much straight through although I have long practiced one of the tidbits of advice the author offers. I refuse to multi-task and believe it is the scourge of inefficiency and incomprehension. But I do believe in taking breaks, in changing the scene, and augmenting the primary objective (in this case, reading) with the indulgence of a good coffee or a piece of chocolate. While at first glance these seems rather obvious or bland, the chapters describing each one are very helpful. What makes the most powerful people in the world is that they are able to line up their thoughts, their words, and their actions in any environment”

From the first chapter it has been surprising how good the book actually is and how much content is in the book, all nice and clear, and it's not just repetition of what you can find elsewhere. Perhaps some is, but you'd need to read about 50 great books to get what is nicely distilled in this one amazing volume.Oh boy, where do I even begin with this one? I mean, who needs a book to tell them what they already know, right? Then he goes on to suggest ways to do that. And his insights about youth, some 40 years ago, are still exactly applicable to youth today. The millennial generation has a bad rap for a lot of reasons, but they are reminding us to organise our life more purposefully. To live with greater intent. And the way they’re going about it is stirring up the older generations. I was not prepared to like this book. I’ve never met the author or heard him speak, but I admit to having a bias against the premise that is at the heart of all consulting—that everything can be taught. It’s not a false assumption; it’s just not a complete one. Context is everything, which is why history often has less to teach us than we may think. In October, Jake and Damian spoke to a wide variety of guests, including a chef, philosopher, and physicist. Their competitor was working just as hard, was just as determined, just as focussed, just as ready, just as driven…. But on the day, they slipped into the obscurity of second place.

My main takeaways are a few things. The first is "the main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing". I've heard that before but I think I had to go through some experiences in life, getting lost from a well-defined path and only sort of finding out just how lost I am when something radical happens in my life. I have problems keeping the main thing the main thing, at least partially because I haven't really defined what the main thing is for me. I've never really had 1 main thing, so it's easy for me to pretend that my main thing is something generalized like "I make stuff" or "I'm good at knowing things other people don't". That's not my main thing and I think I'm in a position to embrace that notion now. My second main takeaway was that all things not envisioned, considered, planned for, measured, monitored, managed, are inherently and inescapably left up to chance. If I want to succeed, I can't just leave all of these things up to random chance. I'm losing out on opportunity, on well-being, and on contribution to the future of the entire species by letting things like my emotional state, my health, my sanity, my ambition, my energy, my career trajectory and my influence be coin flips. A fantastic book that will help you think like an Olympic champion - in mind, body and spirit. DAME KELLY HOLMES Emotions are different than feelings… an emotion is mostly a reaction, and a feeling is an interpretation… The emotion of fear came up, but you don’t have to choose to feel scared and run away…” This is a self-help book with a sporting and activity emphasis which is short and easy to read. It derives from the excellent The High-Performance Podcast series which has been running since March 2020. In the podcast guests from different walks of life are interviewed by Humphrey and Hughes on their ideas and experiences around defining, delivering, and sustaining high performance. The book attempts to wrap some theory around what they say What’s GoodHigh performance begins in the mind: before you can behave like a high achiever, you must think like one. Next comes behaviour, in which you turn that newfound psychological state into concrete actions. Then, through that behaviour, you can pass a culture of high performance on to your wider team, which will help both you and them. High performance ripples outwards from our minds to our actions, to our teams.” High performance happens because we put these concepts up on the dashboard of our mind… Our goal is to focus on these more consistently then you ever have before. That’s what moves the needle.” Each lesson contains the real-life stories of high performing individuals who have been interviewed on the podcast. These individuals explain how they have achieved their success, with raw honesty. Many describe the times they failed, and how failure was a pivotal moment on their journey to succeeding. The book highlights how success and high performance are not always the linear journey people looking from the outside in may think it is. And, the book is filled with examples of inspiring stories such as: The Productivity Project: Accomplishing More by Managing Your Time, Attention, and Energy (Hardcover)