I’ve always been keen on driving continuous service improvement, never settling for the current level of performance, and looking to see what we can do to get it to the next level.
But whilst constantly improving is a good goal to have, sometimes our performance just plateaus, we reach a level and we just stay there for a while.
Sometimes it’s good to just rest at that level for a while, regroup, re-mergize and then make push on to the next level, just doing what we’re doing.
At other times we need to change things around, we need to try something new, take a different approach in order to breakthrough to new performance levels. This is why cross-training is so popular. It allows you to train differently, different muscle groups, which then add benefit, which allows you to take your performance to the next level.
For example, you can jog 3 times a week, but after a while there is no more improvement, so you need to do something different. That could be going to the gym and using weighs, swimming, or even bike riding, because they work the muscles in a slightly different way, or build supporting muscles all that help you benefit in what you were primarily doing and help you break through the plateau.
We need to look to see how we can apply this to business. Once we have hit a peak, and then we find ourselves plateauing, then we should look to try some different things. Focus our training or improvements on other area, areas that are adjacent, and when we do that we should see some improvements, and break through the plateau.
Before we do that though we need to understand whether the plateau we have hit is truly a plateau, one where we won’t get any better without changing things, or whether we need to continue with what we are doing, then we will see improvement.
In my marathon running I had run 5 marathons, and hadn’t broken the 5 hours barrier, my times were close, and it looked like a plateau. My friends were telling me I needed to change things around if I wanted to get better, but I could feel that I hadn’t really reached a plateau, I was still under performing and that I need to continue doing what I was doing.
On Sunday in my 6th Marathon, I finally broke the barrier, and not only broke it but ran 7 minutes under 5 hrs, which was my single biggest improvement, in my time.
For my next marathon I will continue with the same plan, because I feel I can improve more, maybe another couple of minutes, without changing because I have’t really plateaued.
But after that, then I will need to look to change my routines if I want to improve, I don’t think carrying on in the same way will work to help me improve much further, I will need to look at swimming, weights, riding and rowing to help get me to that next level.
So where are you in you’re business, do you have room for improvement, or have you plateaued ?
If it’s the latter what will you look to do differently to help get you to that next level.
Staying at the same pace is the same as going backward, and in todays world that spells disaster.
If you want to arrange a strategy session so we can look at what you can do differently to revolutionise results email me at gordon@leadership-principles.com.
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