Letting Go is Critical to High Performance

You can't do everything that's important. You just don't have the time, the energy or the resources to achieve every goal, every target, that you've probably set.

The real high performers, the people or organisations or businesses that leap ahead and achieve great things, exercise the power of focus.

They know how to keep their attention on the very few results that have the biggest impact. And where attention goes, energy flows.

It's the Pareto principle actually. The ability to put your care into the 20% of results that will make 80% of the difference in the current and continuing success of your endeavour, whether it be business, career or personal growth.

The other side of the focus coin is letting go. You can't increase your focus without decreasing what you give your attention to. You have to let go of something, and probably let go of a few things.

But how do you decide what to let go of?

Here are some clues to help you decide which results may very well not matter enough to give any of your time to right now:

1. What do you keep avoiding? Is there something that you keep putting off, never look forward to doing, or just have it on your list because you feel you have to do it? If there's no passion and no severe consequences if you stop it, then stop doing it.
2. What can someone else do for you? Do you really, honestly have to be the one to do it? Delegating isn't easy emotionally, but it is easy physically if you write a detailed plan and explain it clearly to whoever you decide to delegate to.
3. Is there something that if you stopped doing it today, it would make little difference in the big picture of what matters in your business, your career, your life? In all honesty, a lot of what we do is actually a waste of time and effort. If it doesn't make a positive difference, stop doing it.
4. List your current projects or activities and rank them by importance. I know, you've done this a thousand times before. But this time, when you've done it, stop doing the bottom 20% as a start. See what happens.
5. What do your performance measures tell you? Which areas are really doing quite okay as they are? Not everything needs to be continuously improved all the time. What can safely move off your radar now?
6. Is clutter swamping up around you? Piles of unread articles or books or papers, files and folders on your computer, project files on your desk or in your filing cabinet. Spend a day to clear it all out so only what matters most right now is visible and easily accessible. Toss, hand on, or store the rest.
7. What is stressing you? When you feel stress, it's a signal that you're not in the flow, you're not working at your highest level, perhaps that you're working in the wrong way. Can you stop what you're doing and try a different, easier approach?

High performance comes with a price tag, and it's a price tag most people don't look at. Sharpen your focus, and ruthlessly let go of a result or two that doesn't truly make a difference that matters.

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Letting Go is Critical to High Performance