Book Review & top 1o Takeaways – High Performance Habits by Brendon Burchard

In the spirit of full disclosure, I had no idea who Brendon Burchard was prior to reading his book High Performance Habits: How Extraordinary People Become That Way. It was on a recommended reading list from a blogger I admire so I bought it.

I had no idea he had spent the last twenty years pursuing high performance or that, as a world-class high performance coach who has worked with CEOs, executives and leaders around the world for the last ten years, and that his research and was so extensive and exhaustive.

His book was an opportunity to immerse myself in the concepts, strategies and tactics he has developed and validated through his career and his work helping high performers achieve optimal results.

His premise is quite simple: high performance is not an inherent talent or personality trait we born with. It’s the results of building a special set of six key skills. He identifies each, and then breaks them down, supplying practical information and tactics to start implementing them. The six skills are:

  • Seek clarity: consistently seek clarity again and again as times change and as you take on new projects or enter new social situations.
  • Generate energy: actively care for your mental stamina, physical energy, and positive emotions in very specific ways.
  • Raise the necessity: actively tap into the reasons you absolutely must perform well.
  • Increase productivity: focus on your Prolific Quality Output in the area in which you want to be known and to drive impact.
  • Develop influence: consciously develop a positive support network.
  • Demonstrate courage: courage is not an occasional act, but a trait of choice and will

I highly recommend this book if you want take a hard look at what you need to do, as well get specific information on how to improve your performance and results. P.S.: Check the bottom of this document to find how to order your High Performance Indicator Self-Assessment and get a FREE copy of this book.

TOP 10 IDEAS

  1. To succeed, always remember that the main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing.
  2. Effectiveness in life does not come from focusing on what is automatic, easy, or natural for us.  Rather, it is the result of how we consciously strive to meet life’s harder challenges, grow beyond our comforts, and deliberately work to overcome our biases and preferences so that we may understand, love, serve, and lead others.
  3. No matter your current level of performance, clarifying your primary field of interest and the skills you need to master for your next level of success must be a priority.
  4. People who set goals and regularly self-monitor are almost two and half times more likely to attain their goals. They also develop more accurate plans and feel more motivated to follow through on them. Researchers found that monitoring progress is just as important to goal attainment as setting the goal in the first place.
  5. Research shows that people tend to maintain motivation, give more effort, and achieve higher performance when they are held accountable for their outcomes, are evaluated more often, and have the opportunity to demonstrate their expertise or gain respect from those they serve.
  6. Instead of trying to balance hours, try to balance happiness or progress in your major life arenas. Organize life into ten distinct categories: health, family, friends, intimate relationship, mission/work, finances, adventure, hobby, spirituality, and emotion. Rate your level of happiness (1- 10) in each and write your goals in each of the arenas every Sunday night.
  7. Figuring out what you are supposed to produce, and learning the priorities in the creation, quality, and frequency of that output, is one of the greatest breakthroughs you can have in your career. Find your best allocation of weekly time for your Prolific Quality Output and stick to it as best you can.
  8. Determine the five major skills you need to develop over the next three years to grow into the person you hope to become. Everything is trainable. No matter what skill you want to learn, with enough training and practice and intention, you can become more proficient at it.
  9. Strategic thinking means stripping things down to the essentials and planning their accomplishments out over months and years. You have to be executing against a plan – your five moves – that’s already in place for the next several months.
  10. Spend at least 30 minutes every Sunday reflecting on your progress and new learning during the previous week.

Want to discover where you stand with respect to high performance in your business, career or life? Get a FREE copy for Brendon’s High Performance Indicator Self-assessment at www.HighPerformanceIndicator.com. You will have the opportunity to get a complimentary copy of this book.

To your success.