The 4 secrets of high performance that will enable your team to make the cut.

I was asked by The Institute of Sales Management (ISM) to do a talk on something inspiring, engaging with my own concepts, ideas and experience of high performing teams.

"I spoke about the 6 weeks that changed my life, and the 4 secrets of high performance I learned along the way at the old vic theater near Waterloo."

Who are you that's more than your title or role?

"How can your team make the high performance cut?"

I am sure you would all agree are experiences are never wasted, they are all part of your story, you're always learning new insights...

I remember the day like it was yesterday, I just took over a sales team in previous sales role.

I then realised after spending time with the sales team, they had been belittled, where broken, and had extremely low motivation. The senior management believed respect and result where gained by authority, titles and control.

I knew It was just a matter of time until I got a call from the senior management

“Adrian” I want you to sort 2 peoples performance out. They are not performing and its not good enough! Chris has been a high performer for years and has missed the last 3 months, and Jane is a new hire and consistently delivers below target….

I am a director of this business and If they don't perform very soon I will remove them, and get new sales people. 

"I understand, give me 6 weeks…."

Let's just step back a few years first.

I'd just left the army, full of optimism about finding my own way in the world and I got my first 'real' job, an important logistics role in a major retailer. In other words, working in the returns department at Argos. I started and then began to realise there where many lost souls, people who lacked motivation and I thought at that moment….I'm worth more than this.

That was when the reality of being in the corporate world hit me. Though I was looking for my own way, there were a lot of things I missed about the army....

Army

I left school with 0 qualifications. I had 2 choices mcdonalds to get my 5 stars, or join the British Army.

The army it was, I went with enthusiasm envisioning a life in the army and how great it would be, I had finally made something of my life.

The day came when I went to the selection center before you get accepted into phase 1 training. I gave it everything over the 2 days

and was waiting patiently outside the selection sergeants office…."I am sorry Mr Hales the medical records have come back and you can't come in because you used 1 inhaler when you were 8." In that moment my whole life flashed before my eyes, what would I do?

I refused to give up so I made a call to the careers office and said I need a 2nd chance. A week passed and the call came in, they agree to give me a 2nd chance. They placed me on running machine, where I was put through multiple fitness tests. If I passed the tests I was in.

I passed them with flying colours and I was in, The 1st Battalion the Staffordshire regiment, infantry soldier, start date August 1999, Bassingbourn Army training centre, Salerno Platoon.

I remember the first day, there was 50 of us getting our heads shaved and picking up kit. Very quickly you knew what was coming, where you were going because the environment was reflective to what they wanted to create. A professional, high performing soldier.

Then its 32 weeks of insane pressure both mentally, physically. For the first 6 weeks and your new team can't get anything right, press up after press up, run after run, late night after late night. 

You see, in the first 6 weeks it's about looking after number 1, and that doesn’t work.

When other people mess up, you all get punished, if your mate has not got the right gear, undisciplined, or not a team player, or not meeting the high standards you all get punished.

Sooner or later people quit, most stayed. I went home after 6 weeks on leave, and it suddenly dawned on me, it wasn't about me, it was about helping others and they would help me.

That's when it all changed we developed a trusting and close knit team. I would help you with your kit, fitness or stop you from making a mistake, we helped each other reach the standards no matter the pressure. 

The punishments got less, and everything worked extremely efficiently, I had your back, and you have mine without question.

When you finish training you go to your regiment….You regularly go on 12 mile runs full of kit with about 30 kg of weight.

It's a mix of infantry, engineers, cooks and those who are coming back from injury. There are different levels and different abilities

We place the strongest people at the front of the group and we put the strongest people at the back of the group so if anyone slips back we bring them to the front.

The run starts and is extremely hard, arduous and through undulating ground, about halfway through some people start dropping to the back. The strongest at the back bring them to the front, and the strongest at the front keep them there.

Then sure as day they start dropping back again, and the strongest at the back bring them to the front, and the strongest at the front take there kit of and carry the load between the strongest until they get there breath back.

We believe everyone adds value to the team, everyone has their own strengths, the cook, the engineer, the ones coming back from injury.

And we all hold the standards for each other. Because the cook keeps you full, the engineer keeps your weapon working, and over time, the weaker members become to strong, and around it goes, so simplistic, yet highly effective.

“We never leave anybody behind.”

What would it be like if you never left any body behind?

Rugby

I have played rugby since 5 years old, and played all over the world at semi professional and professional level.

I got my first semi professional contract in 2004 and signed for rugby lions in national 2. What got us into the team in the first place was why we were all there.

Weather you were a great tackler, great kicker or great runner the team create a professional environment which allows you to be the best player you can be in that area.

A professional environment of physio, team manager, gym, training sessions on the pitch, nutrition, backroom staff and training which was harder than our games.

This allows you to focus being a player, it filters the noise, and allows you to develop your strengths and be intentional. 

Because strengths come easy, there is more motivation with your strengths, your strengths create consistent results, you can apply those strengths in any situation. 

We did things under a lot of pressure, rugby drills, fitness, team sessions, game related situations.

And what enabled us to be so successful was simplicity, with repetition, then evolving the process, then repeat.

When we did things under pressure, we could replicate that result in any situation we faced and be calm when doing it, we were more resourceful.

So when it came to those moments that matter, we could replicate the result we needed.

“We trained as we played”

I remember there was a long standing record of 39 tries in a season which stood for 20 years.

I remember starting the season and focused on the top x 5 things I needed to work on that year. My strength was I was fast and skillful. I spend all my time that year honing that strength, sprints, speed and agility drills and weights i gave it everything...

I was 6 tries down with 2 games to go, the papers and supporters where saying i am not sure he will break the record, is this a bridge too far? the 2nd to last game was tough, and fast paced, i finished the game having scored 4 tries.

That year I broke the record in the last game, and scored 2, 41 tries in 25 games, all by training harder than I would play, and focusing on developing my strengths and the team doing so too, Our team was unbeaten all season. we got promoted and won the cup.

Does your environment allow people to be the best?

How can you leverage yours and your team's strengths?

How can you train as you play?

Learning and Development

In learning and development we create environments which reflect the type of result and person we want to create. The environment dictates the attitudes and behaviours people will become over time. We create standards that push people to become more that they can imagine, in workshops and coaching we train as we play by leveraging strengths and simulating, pressure, challenge and make it engaging.

We have the philosophy where we never leave anybody behind. Low performer, and high performer. We believe everyone has unlimited potential, we look at what people could become and we treat them in that way regardless of their current situation.

Treat someone how they could be, and they will become what they should be.

New hires, graduates and account managers have shown an improvement on skill, motivation and learning at 32% over the industry standard of 10% through this approach.

Argos was a good experience, it got me on my feet, taught me about the reality of working life, but also showed me that I could do more, I could push myself, learn more, I was more than my circumstances, I was more than what my title suggested.

So when I said give me 6 weeks…

I spent 6 weeks with Chris and Jane, and was committed creating results, I lived 1.5 hours away from them, and i was at their work before them, within 2 weeks they were there before me. We raised their standards and coach and supported them relentlessly, we ignited a self belief in them. I wouldn't leave them behind.

I made the phone call to the director…I said just to let you know, Chris did 108% of target, and Jane 270% of target, I guess they will be keeping their jobs.

That phone call was such a proud moment that these 2 people proved someone so wrong, and were keeping their jobs, and it confirmed to me that everyone has potential as long as you hold the standard and treat them to what they could become.

They had then created that result under pressure and could replicate that, and they did, they continued to deliver.

Have you ever been down and out, who was the person who picked you up?

Who are you that's more than your title or role?

1. Environment

To get the quickest change environment dictates people attitudes and behaviors. When you all go to the gym it dramatically changes your behaviour your focused and competitive.

When you go to Yoga your all mindful and present, and then when you leave the environment your back on your phone and life happens. Subtle changes in the environment will create high performing and engaged individuals, and allow people to flourish

2. Standards

You can tell if a team is high performing by looking at their standards, and its the standards which you hold consistently which enable championships to be won.

The best team in the world the all blacks are often asked by cleaners at stadiums can we clean your changing room after a game? The all blacks say no, as they will clean it because nobody cleans up after them, even with all that success they clean their own room and that sames standards converts to the pitch, they work for each other and clean up on the pitch after themselves.

3. Never leave anybody behind

My philosophy was, imagine you had this team for the next 10 years and you had to get a result regardless. How would you treat them? This standards changes the way to behave around people and enables you to get results you didn't think possible, as you try different approaches to support people to get results, and never give up.

4. We train as we play

Simulating the environment and qualities you want people to demonstrate, the problems they need to solve, the people you want them to become is important.

Through coaching, development and workshops, its challenged people in a controlled space 20% 30% more than what they thought possible…..Their awareness, skill, confidence and ability to operate at that level increases, which makes performing to a higher level in there normal role come unconsciously and consistently.