High performing individuals, from business leaders to professional athletes, are different from the rest of the world. There are three very common criteria that define high performers and their edge:
- High performers achieve their goals and beat their expectations
- High performers outperform their peer group
- High performers are consistent in their performance level
From our research and hands-on collaboration with high performance teams and individuals we estimate that 20% of individuals are truly high-performers. By self-selection, another 20% of teams and individuals fall into the low-performance category. Although this is not intuitive, the fact is that when surveyed randomly using a self-selection method, 20% of respondents identified their own performance as low. What will surprise you is that only 10% of people identified themselves as high-performers, demonstrating a clear point that high-performers are people that continually seek improvement and set aspirational goals.
The velocityHUB Performance Curve – VPC
At velocityHUB, we authored the velocityHUB Performance Curve – VPC. We know both factually and instinctively that we can plot any team’s performance along this curve and come out with the same result within a +/- 5% variance range.
The VPC has three core performance levels with the middle level having three sub-levels:
- High Performance
- This is displayed as the “right-side” of the VPC. The high performance slice of the bell curve represents 20% of the workforce with a +/- 2.5% variance. Individuals and teams that fall into this category are known as High Performers. These are individuals who achieve their goals, outperform their peers and maintain a high-performance level over an extended period of time.
- Standard Performance
- Standard Performance is displayed as the “middle” of the VPC. The average performance slice of the bell curve represents 60% of the workforce with a +/- 2.5% variance. Individuals and teams that fall into this slice are known as Average Performers and divided into three sub-levels: Above Average, Average and Below Average. In common speak, they are known for doing a good job most of the time but not a great job all the time. These individuals are described by co-workers as being “solid workers”, “dependable”, “showing up every day and doing their job” or “better than nothing”.
- Low Performance
- This is displayed as the “wrong-side” of the VPC. The low-to-no-performance slice of the bell curve represents 20% of the workforce with a +/- 2.5% variance. Individuals and teams that fall into this slice are known as either Low Performers or Non-Performers. This representation is not to be worn like a Cub Scout merit badge but unfortunately 1 out of every 5 people in the workforce achieves this distinction. You may describe this slice of workers as “not really getting it”, “always coming up short”, “delivering their project late and over budget” or “always behind the 8 ball”.
Why It Matters?
At velocityHUB, we also know that where you live on the curve defines so much of how you live your life. If you reflect on that sentence for a moment you will begin to visualize the life of a high performer. The point we are making is very simple, the more passion and energy you have to move to the right along the curve the more likely you are to lead a better life. Conversely, if you are satisfied with performing at a low level, then the facts stand that you have greater challenges and difficulties in other areas of your life.
Through our collaborative research, we present 6 Factoids of High Performers & 1 Inspirational Thought.
6 FACTOIDS OF HIGH PERFORMERS & 1 INSPIRATIONAL THOUGHT
- High performers make 30% more money than their peer group.
- High performers rate job satisfaction 10% higher than their peer group.
- High performers have 2 times as many connections within their networks.
- High performers partake in hobbies 25% more often.
- High performers have a lower divorce rate than standard and low performers.
- High performers retire 3 years earlier than their peer group.
- You have the ability to become a high performer and reap the rewards of #s 1 – 6 above.
So let’s go back to the opening sentence of this section “Why It Matters?” Where you live on the curve defines how you live your life. Based on the facts, high performers enjoy their job more, make more money, retire earlier, are more active and stay married more often. Do you think that there is a linkage between many of these items? Of course there is! If you perform at a high level, you should make more money. Financial stress is the number one reason for divorce. So if you make more money, the divorce rate should be lower. Hobbies require money too. More money equals more hobbies. When you are more active, you are meeting more people and making more connections. When you make more connections, you are able to build a stronger support network and those connections help drive your high performance. And each of these points, definitely make you a little more satisfied with your work performance.
What To Do Now?
When you got out of bed this morning you made a choice, consciously or unconsciously. You made the choice to be a high performer, average performer or low performer. As you begin to think about the choice you make, we pose three critical questions that you should be asking yourself right now:
- Where are you personally on the curve?
- Are you satisfied with your position on the curve?
- Are you prepared to move to the right of the curve?
Let us help you with your answers. If you don’t know where you are on the VPC, then you are most likely somewhere along the Standard Performance continuum. This is actually the norm, most people fit squarely in this category. If you know exactly where you are and are either not satisfied or feel you want more out of life, don’t waste anytime – start on the path to achieving your goals today and let us help.
velocityHUB offers a proven 1-day program that starts by exploring your current state and rapidly shifts to visualizing your successful state. During the high-powered, energetic program you will personally focus on experiencing a higher level of performance immediately. velocityHUB will work with you to develop a VISION & BRAND Plan that lays the foundation for you to achieve your ultimate goals of living a high-performance life.
Beat your own expectations. Outperform your peer group. Increase your performance. Accelerate your vision.
About Brendan P. Keegan
Brendan P. Keegan is Founder & Managing Partner of velocityHUB, a leading management consulting firm. He is a 5-time industry leading President & CEO of large, private-equity-backed companies and served as the Fortune 100’s youngest Chief Sales Officer for EDS, a $22-billion technology industry leader. Brendan has raised nearly $1.0 billion in capital and returned over $2.2 billion to investors through successful exit strategies. He has trained over 100,000 leaders, led nearly 50,000 employees, driven sales of over $100 billion and worked globally in over 150 countries. Brendan was named a Distinguished Fellow by Dartmouth College, a Fast50 Executive by FastCompany, a successful entrepreneur by Enterprise Bank, Best-of-the-Best CEOs by Incentive, 100 Fastest Growing Companies by PriceWaterhouseCoopers, Business of the Year by NH Business Journal, Top 10 Coach of the Year by USA Football, and Volunteer of the Year by & Youth Coach of the Year locally for his commitment to community service. Brendan is a sought-after speaker by companies across the globe on leadership, sales and performance. He has authored over 200 articles and been published in global publications including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Business Week, Fast Company and InformationWeek.
Brendan serves on corporate boards to include Revolution Armor, Merchants Auto Group, ExpressIt Delivery, Olaeris, velocityHUB and nashuaHUB. Brendan and his wife Dana founded the Keegan Courage & Faith Foundation with the goal of giving back $1.0 million for youth education, athletics and at-risk youth across Southern New Hampshire.
About velocityHUB
velocityHUB delivers results-oriented training programs, high-value consulting and targeted executive coaching to many of the world’s leading companies, small and medium businesses, and non-profits. Our vision is to build one million leaders to drive performance, sales and revenue growth.
Contact: Amanda E Rogers | 603.402.1734 | amanda@velocityhub.com