Be the hardest-working person in the room. That’s how you separate yourself from your competitors.
But here’s the good news. Being the hardest-working person in the room means that you don’t necessarily have to be the room’s smartest person.
And it means that you don’t have to be the strongest person either. You don’t have to be the best-looking person in the room, nor be the tallest or the richest.
Becoming a super performer by putting in the extra work, pushing yourself, and working hard– that’s the only way you can outwork your competition.
Welcome to Snapreads! Today, we’re bringing you how to be a super performer and outwork your competition. Are you ready? Let’s get started!
Smarter Faster Better
by Charles Duhigg
⏱ 14 minutes reading time
🎧 Audio version available
Take Initiative
The first step towards becoming a super performer and having the satisfaction of leaving your competition confused in the dirt behind you is to take the initiative. Being a super performer doesn’t mean just doing what your job description says.
It means going above and beyond that. When it comes to the employer’s mindset, they want someone willing to take the initiative and do what it takes rather than just someone who does the work and goes home.
So when you see something that needs to be done, take the initiative and do it. Take the initiative by being the first to step up to volunteer to do something at work. Take the initiative by being open to learning about something new.
Put in the Work Every Day
What do all super performers have in common? They put in the work every day, day after day. Being a super performer takes a remarkable amount of effort. That’s why not everyone can become one. And there’s no way to get around putting in the work.
Did you know that the top athletes, the ones on top of the world after winning a match or game, immediately put in training time after that win? Put in the work, day after day. Not only are you locking in on that momentum, but you never stray from being at the top of your game.
Learn From Others
What’s separating you from the competition is your ability to learn from others. The chances are that you haven’t mastered your field yet. But you can benefit from others who have mastered their niches.
When you learn from their experiences, techniques, and tactics, then you already have the advantage of two super performers to help you outwork and outwit your competition. You’ll find that the majority of the best performers in history, no matter which field of work they’re in, have worked with mentors to hone their skills.
Artists, athletes, entrepreneurs, writers– everyone benefits from learning from other high-achieving people. And the fact that it helps you gain a dramatic edge over your competition is a lovely bonus.
Accept Feedback on Your Performance
How can you be a super high performer if you don’t have feedback in the first place? In a Harvard Business Review study, they found that 50% of high performers stand out because they expect to meet up with their manager at least once per month to discuss their performance and performance reports.
Feedback isn’t there to discourage you– it’s there to make you get better, and it makes it easier to get better. Without feedback, you’ll never know what to improve on. Do you want to reduce to guessing about how good you’re doing? That doesn’t sound like the way to get to the top.
Outthink Your Competition
Even if you think your competition has an advantage over you that can allow them to win, even if they seem more significant, better, remember that your competition is human. And you know what that means? It means that they’re flawed.
So in some parts of the job, you can beat them. So how can you go around doing that? You outthink them.
And you outthink them by learning more than them. Search for knowledge, read and research. These basics are the quickest way to get a result when it comes to becoming more valuable to your company, bosses, and to your clients. Even merely reading improves your way of thinking. It gives you the fundamentals of knowledge that you can use for other ideas.
If you’re in a business with books on it, this will give you the knowledge you need to understand your business. And if you read on a broader range, even on subjects that aren’t directly related to your business, then you still benefited.
Be a Better Salesperson
There is no better salesperson to promote yourself than you since your professional and personal development is your responsibility alone.
Being better than the competition doesn’t always mean crunching numbers faster and having a competition on who can stay at the office more or put in the most hours.
By being a better salesperson, you’re already a step ahead of your competitor. Put in effort in befriending those around you. Put in effort in befriending your employer and bosses. You never know.
When you excite yourself up so much– and live up to those expectations, then you could have a chance to be the first in mind when it comes to bonuses, raises, and promotions.
Be Optimistic
When it comes to business, sports, art, and even life in general, it’s essential to focus on positive experiences. You’re not going to become a super performer if you’re constantly feeling down or if you’re pessimistic about your odds of beating the competition.
Pessimism and optimism are learned behaviors. You can learn to grow out of one and adapt to the other. We all have that inner dialogue, and we all have those negative thoughts that tell you that you can’t work hard enough, that you’re not good enough, and that your competitor is better than you.
Your first instinct may be to kick those thoughts to the curb– and that’s going to come later, but first, you must acknowledge those thoughts then look at the causes behind them.
You can learn from them, and then you can move on– and kick those negative thoughts to the curb.
Bounce Back From Failure
If you want to be successful, one of the best, to be a champion, then the first and most important quality is to possess that drive.
That drive is what allows you to want to succeed so much that you’re willing to push yourself as no one has ever pushed you before.
But sometimes, no matter how hard we work at something and no matter how much effort we put into it, there will be times that we fail. Failure is inevitable, but it’s the best part of your success story, and it’s what differentiates between you and the competition; your ability to bounce back from it and how quickly you recover and jump ahead to continue working even harder.
It’s okay to be upset by failure, especially in the heat of the moment. What matters is what you do after. Are you willing to use this opportunity to learn how to perform better? Every failure we experience in life is a valuable learning experience.
There’s nothing better to push us forward in the right direction. When you keep that mindset, you learn from your mistakes and never repeat them.
There, you have an edge. You’re more experienced and self-aware than ever.
Related: Simple Solution to Productivity – How to Make Your Schedule Manageable
Know thy competition
Alright, all this time, we have on you and what you can do to become the best version and the highest performing version of yourself, so how about taking a look at the competition?
Know your competition. So whatever your environment is: whether you’re at work, school, or playing sports, you need to find who the top performers are. Scout out who the most successful are. Observe who everyone praises and who everyone is envious of.
That’s your competition. Once you know your competition, you can then learn from your competitors.
Avoid Burnout
And lastly, this is probably the most crucial piece of advice we have to offer today, and it’s to avoid burnout. You can’t expect to be at the top of your game every day.
Outworking the competition sounds nice until you suddenly crash. By the time it takes you to get back up, your competitors will be ahead.
You have to think about yourself and the limited amount of energy and willpower that you have. Your level of energy is like a battery. It’s a battery that needs recharging.
Sometimes, all it takes is one night of good quality sleep. When you sleep well, eat healthily, and don’t overwork yourself to the point that you’re sacrificing your health, that’s when you’re really at the top of your game.
And before you know it, you’re more successful than you ever were!
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