The Keys to Peak Performance

According to Brian Tracy, there are three keys to peak performance – Commitment, Completion, and Closure. Using these keys can help you build better habits for getting better results in work and life. 

Let’s take a look at these three keys more closely:

Commitment

When we really commit to something, we give ourself permission to give it our all. When we make a firm commitment to achieve a goal, and put aside all excuses, it is very much like stepping on the accelerator in our subconscious.  We become more creative, determined, and focused than ever before.  Great men and women are those who make clear, unequivocal commitments and then refuse to budge from them, no matter what happens.

Completion

Nothing builds motivation or momentum like finishing what we start. Completion is the second ingredient in peak performance.  There is an enormous difference between doing 95% of a task and 100% of a task.  It is also very common for us to work very hard up to the 90% or 95% level and then slack off and delay the final completion.  This is a temptation that we must fight.  We must continually force ourself, discipline ourself, to resist this natural tendency and push through to completion.

Closing the Loop

Don’t let unfinished business rob your attention, energy, and time.  It wears you down and wears you out. Bringing closure to an issue in our personal or work life is absolutely essential for us to feel happy and in control of our situation. Lack of closure – unfinished business, an incomplete action of any kind – is a major source of stress, dissatisfaction, and even failure. It consumes enormous amounts of physical and emotional energy.

Think about it, if we don’t commit, we won’t give it our all. If we don’t complete, we’ll erode our confidence to see things through and deliver. And if we don’t close the loop, we simply distract ourself.