By JAMES M. CITRIN
You are about to deliver the most important speech of your career. Or you are in the green room before a big interview on CNBC. Perhaps you are on deck to present your firm's final project plan to the selection committee set to award a mega contract. Whatever the particular circumstance, how you perform in these high-stakes moments will either accelerate your career or slam on the brakes. Unfortunately, just when it counts most, your emotions want to grab the wheel from your brain, causing your heart to race, preventing you from catching your breath, and leading you to break out in a cold sweat.
About the Author
James M. Citrin is a senior director and member of the worldwide board of executive search firm Spencer Stuart. He has published five books including national bestsellers "You're in Charge, Now What?," "The Dynamic Path" and "The Five Patterns of Extraordinary Careers."
You are not alone.
In every field of endeavor there are pivotal moments, turning points. How you perform – whether you find what it takes to deliver when it counts most or crack under the very real pressure – will determine whether you break out as a top performer or remain an undifferentiated member of the pack.
One place to look for strategies on handling these moments is sports, especially the Olympics. For Olympic and Paralympic athletes, these make-or-break events come around only every four years. Often a lifetime of training is on the line for the one moment when they have to stick the triple Axel in figure skating, hit every slalom gate with perfection in skiing, or slide in the ideal aerodynamic body position on the luge track at speeds that can exceed 95 mph. How Olympians and Paralympians prepare themselves for their events is instructive and directly applicable to achieving peak performance in business.
With the XXI Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games in Vancouver, Canada, right around the corner (in February and March), I recently had the privilege to talk with Olympians about how they prepare for these moments. I helped lead a series of roundtable discussions in Chicago for the Olympic Ambassador Program, which the U.S. Olympic Committee created to teach Olympians about their roles as role models and representatives of the United States of America. The event brought together 80 of the top winter athletes from across the country with the goal of improving performance at the Games while providing training on the expectations, roles and responsibilities of representing the U.S.
One of the topics in our roundtable discussions was how to achieve the best performance at the most important moments. I asked athletes to describe what they do to achieve their optimal mental state for competition. Do they concentrate on the process or do they focus on the results? Do they stick to their routines or create specialized plans for their competitions?
Thirty-two-year-old Todd Lodwick from Steamboat Springs, Colo., who is preparing for his fifth Olympiad in Nordic Combined (an event combining cross-country skiing and ski jumping) described his preparation this way: "I've learned to focus on what I can control, like my training, my equipment, my race strategy, and be aware of what I can't control, like the weather, the quality of the snow, or my competitors. I use the image of bricks on a balance — I want the 'bricks' from the things I can control to outweigh the 'bricks' on the other side of the scale." Keeping that vivid image squarely in his mind, resulting from proactive preparation and awareness of the surrounding circumstances, gives Todd the confidence and calmness to thrive at the key moment.
Keauna McLaughlin, a 2010 Olympic hopeful who is a 17-year-old pairs figure skater from Los Angeles, was very open on this point with her fellow members of Team USA. "I'm still working on controlling my emotions in the biggest competitions," the two-time U.S. champion said. "I definitely need to concentrate better on what we're doing in the moment and the fact that we've practiced it countless times, rather than being distracted about what the judges might be thinking or on what doesn't happen if I don't stick the jump."
In addition to being in the moment, the experienced Olympic athletes cautioned the first timers on how overwhelming the experience can be and how easy it is to break your daily routine by giving into the excitement of the Opening Ceremony, the relentless media attention, and the festival atmosphere of the Games. "Learn to stick to your routine. Have fun and enjoy the experience, but don't allow yourself to get distracted by everything going on in the Olympic Village," suggested Daron Rahlves, the 36-year-old three-time Olympian who moved from traditional alpine competition to the new sport of skicross (a mix between skiing and snowboardcross that will make its Olympic debut in Vancouver).
These pearls of wisdom from some of the world's greatest athletes can be applied to peak performance in everyday business. The approach — prepare relentlessly, concentrate on what you can control, stick to your routine, don't get sucked into surrounding hoopla, and focus on what you are doing in the moment rather than on the outcome — will serve you well in the most important moments of your career.
Don't get sucked into surrounding hoopla! (great line!)
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