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January 19 - February 1, 2020
science of performance.
The process of setting a goal on the outer boundaries of what we think is possible, and then systematically pursuing it, is one of the most fulfilling parts about being human. It’s also a good thing that we want to take our game to the next level because, more than ever, we have no other choice.
global competition has led to a shortage of “good jobs for good people.” As a result, he writes, “An increasing number of people in the world are miserable, hopeless, suffering, and becoming dangerously unhappy.”
The power of purpose as a performance enhancer
The key to strengthening your biceps—and, as we’ll learn, any muscle, be it physical, cognitive, or emotional—is balancing the right amount of stress with the right amount of rest. Stress + rest = growth. This equation holds true regardless of what it is that you are trying to grow.
the cycle looks like this: 1.Isolate the muscle or capability you want to grow 2.Stress it 3.Rest and recover, allowing for adaptation to occur 4.Repeat—this time stressing the muscle or capability a bit more than you did the last time
Csikszentmihalyi documented a common process across almost all great intellectual and creative performers, regardless of their field: 1.Immersion: total engagement in their work with deep, unremitting focus 2.Incubation: a period of rest and recovery when they are not at all thinking about their work 3.Insight: the occurrence of “aha” or “eureka” moments—the emergence of new ideas and growth in their thinking
PERFORMANCE PRACTICES •Alternate between cycles of stress and rest in your most important pursuits. •Insert short breaks throughout your work over the course of a day. •Strategically time your “off-days,” long weekends, and vacations to follow periods of heavy stress. •Determine when your work regularly starts to suffer. When you find that point, insert a recovery break just prior to it.
Other experiments show that after someone is forced to exert self-control, activity in the prefrontal cortex diminishes altogether. It’s no wonder that when we are mentally drained we struggle with complex problems and self-control, opting for cartoons and cookies instead.
Much like how after you’ve lifted weights to the point of fatigue your arms won’t function very well, after you’ve used your mind to the point of fatigue—be it to resist temptation, make tough decisions, or work on challenging cognitive tasks—it, too, won’t function
The good news is that just like the body, by stressing and allowing the mind to recover it also becomes stronger. Scientists have discovered that the more we resist temptation, think deeply, or focus intensely, the better we become at doing so.
And we cannot take on more sizeable psychological challenges without first building strength through smaller ones. All of this takes us back to where we started: stress + rest = growth.
PERFORMANCE PRACTICES •Remember that “stress is stress”: fatigue on one task spills over into the next, even if the two are completely unrelated. •Only take on a few challenges at once. Otherwise you’ll literally run out of energy. •Tweak your environment to support your goals. This is especially important at times when you know you’ll be depleted. It’s incredible how much our surroundings impact our behavior, especially when we are fatigued. fatigue—be it to resist temptation, make tough decisions, or work on challenging cognitive tasks—it, too, won’t function very well. This fatigue might
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someone who harnessed it to achieve excellence with both his mind and his body.
passion for the game.
The movie illuminated what happens when deep talent meets deep passion and hard, smart work.
As he laid out in his wonderful book, The Art of Learning, it’s how he cultivated that talent and his competitive drive—how
We now know our adaptive stress response is rooted in molecules called inflammatory proteins and a hormone called cortisol. Inflammatory proteins and cortisol are activated by stress and serve as biological messengers, telling the body, “We’re not strong enough to withstand this attack!” As a result, the body marshals an army of biochemical building blocks and directs them to the area under stress, making the body stronger and more resilient.
If the amount of stress is too large or lasts too long, however, the body fails to adapt. It actually does the opposite of growing stronger: it deteriorates. Selye called this the “exhaustion stage.” Today, many refer to the exhaustion stage as being under “chronic stress.” The body rebels and enters something called a catabolic process, or a state of persistent breakdown. Rather than signaling for repair and then subsiding, elevated inflammation and cortisol linger at toxic levels. The adrenal system, constantly on guard, becomes overworked and fatigued. This is why it’s not at all surprising
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Put all this together, and a paradox emerges. Stress can be positive, triggering desirable adaptations in the body; or stress can be negative, causing grave damage and harm.
SKILLS COME FROM STRUGGLE
Growth comes at the point of resistance; we learn by pushing ourselves to the outer reaches of our abilities.
They delayed instruction until students reached the point of failure. Growth comes at the point of resistance. Skills come from struggle.
the greatest gains often follow immense struggle and discomfort.
“It’s only when you step outside your comfort zone that you grow. Being uncomfortable is the path to personal development and growth. It is the opposite of complacency.”
Failure provides an opportunity to analyze a problem from different angles, pushing us to understand its deep underlying structure and to hone the transferrable skill of problem-solving itself.
PERFORMANCE PRACTICES •Stress stimulates growth. •As the chess prodigy turned martial arts champion Josh Waitzkin says, “growth comes at the point of resistance.” •Developing a new capability requires effort: Skills come from struggle. •When you struggle, System 2 is activated and true development is underway; myelin is accumulating and neural connections are strengthening. •Fail productively: Only seek out support after you’ve allowed yourself to struggle.
little doubt and uncertainty is actually a good thing: It signals that a growth opportunity has emerged.
The little voice inside your head saying, “I can’t possibly do this,” is actually a sign that you’re on the right track. It’s your mind trying to pull you back to the familiar path that represents your comfort zone.
Consider the activities you engage in on an average day. Where do they fall on Csikszentmihalyi’s diagram? Are you pursuing growth in a healthy, sustainable way?
for the capabilities you wish to grow—whether they be financial modeling, portrait painting, distance running, or anything in between—you should regularly seek out just-manageable challenges: activities that take you out of your comfort zone and force you to push at the point of resistance for growth.
In this chapter, we explored the benefits of stress, examined why skills come from struggle, and learned what types of activities fall into the category of good, growth-promoting stress—what we call just-manageable challenges. Next, we’ll explore the mechanics of how you should go about working on them and explain why so much of the conventional wisdom on “productive” work misses the mark. PERFORMANCE PRACTICES •Think of a skill/capability that you want to grow. •Assess your current ability to perform this skill/capability. •Actively seek out challenges that just barely exceed your ability.
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It isn’t experience that sets top performers apart but the amount of deliberate practice they put in.
Expertise is not about a certain number of hours practiced. Rather, it’s about the type of work that fills those hours. Practice doesn’t make perfect. Perfect practice makes perfect.
PERFECT PRACTICE So what exactly makes perfect practice? Ericsson found that top performers actively seek out just-manageable challenges, setting goals for practice sessions that just barely exceed their current capabilities. But that is only half the story. What really differentiates deliberate practice is deep concentration.
By doing one thing at a time and devoting his full concentration to that one thing, Dr. Bob is able to do many things
engaging in a task with singular focus is how we grow from stress.
PERFORMANCE PRACTICES Apply the components of perfect practice each time you set out to do meaningful work: •Define a purpose and concrete objectives for each working session. •Ask yourself: What do I want to learn or get done? •Focus and concentrate deeply, even if doing so isn’t always enjoyable. •Single-task: The next time you feel like multitasking, remind yourself that research shows it’s not effective. Keep in mind Dr. Bob’s secret: “Do only one thing at a time.” •Remember that quality trumps quantity.
PERFORMANCE PRACTICES •Identify what interrupts your deep focus. Common intruders, many of which are enabled by smartphones, include: Text messages Social media The internet Television •Remove distractors: Remember that only out of sight truly leads to out of mind.
PERFORMANCE PRACTICES •Divide your work into chunks of 50 to 90 minutes (this may vary by task). Start even smaller if you find yourself struggling to maintain attention. •As you develop “fitness” in whatever it is you are doing, you’ll likely find that you can work longer and harder. •For most activities and most situations, 2 hours should be the uppermost limit for a working block.
DHEA has been linked to a reduced risk of anxiety, depression, heart disease, neurodegeneration, and a range of other diseases and conditions. DHEA is also a neurosteroid, which helps the brain grow.
PERFORMANCE PRACTICES •Remember the power of mindset: How you view something fundamentally changes how your body responds to it. •In situations when you feel the sensation of stress, remind yourself this is your body’s natural way of preparing for a challenge; take a deep breath and channel the heightened arousal and sharper perception toward the task at hand. •Challenge yourself to view stress productively, and even to welcome it. You’ll not only perform better, you’ll also improve your health.
Upon first meeting Rennels, we couldn’t help but notice that he is fully present. None of his movements are without intention. He focuses with a deep gaze that soaks up every detail of his surroundings. When we walked into a conference room, presumably one Rennels has been in hundreds of times, he observed the room as if he was walking out onto a ledge to observe the Grand Canyon. The same thing happened when he opened his laptop: He looked like a 4-year-old discovering a MacBook for the first time. Rennels was taking it all in, seemingly awestruck by things we considered ordinary.
“TURNING IT OFF”: FROM STRESS INTO REST Mindfulness is about being completely present in the moment, fully aware of yourself and your surroundings. It’s helpful to think of the meditation part as highly specific training for being more present at all times of your life. When you meditate, you are strengthening your mindful muscle. It’s a simple practice: •Sit in a comfortable position, ideally in a quiet space. •Breathe deeply for a few breaths, in and out through your nose. •Allow your breath to settle back into its natural rhythm and focus on only the sensations of breathing, noticing the
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them, but then direct your focus back to the rhythm and sensation of your breath. •Set a timer so you don’t have to think about time. Start with just 1 minute and gradually increase the duration.
Just like the expert meditators, Steve’s best runners choose how they respond to the stress of a workout. Their amygdalas are not hijacked.
Developing your mindful muscle creates space for you to choose how you want to respond to stress. In the middle of a challenge, mindfulness helps you remain calm and collected. It lets you devote all your physical and psychological energy to
Choose a time when other distractions are minimized, such as first thing in the morning, after brushing your teeth, or before going to bed. Sit in a comfortable position, ideally in a quiet space. Set a timer so you aren’t distracted by thoughts about the passage of time. Begin breathing deeply, in and out through your nose. Allow your breath to settle back into its natural rhythm and focus on nothing but the sensation of breathing, noticing the rise and fall of your abdomen with each breath; if thoughts arise, notice them, but then let them go. Direct your focus back to the sensation of the
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meditate daily, even if that means keeping individual sessions short. •Apply your growing mindfulness abilities in everyday life. •Have “calm conversations” during stressful periods. •Realize when you want to “turn it off” and then choose to leave stress behind. Pausing to take a few deep breaths helps to activate the prefrontal cortex, your brain’s command and control center.
