Over the past year or so we have had the privilege of working with a number of sporting organisations that enable our Olympians and Paralympians to reach peak performance. It has given us a wonderful insight into what insiders call the high performance system of elite sport.
The focus of our work has been primarily on Board effectiveness and building effective working relationships between non-executive and executive Board members, most of whom have either been elite athletes and/or have been leaders in creating organisations for athletes to thrive. One of the things that has really struck us has been their desire to improve – regardless of how good they may already be. Setting clear goals, inviting regular feedback, taking action to improve many things by small percentages and having a hunger to be better next time, are distinguishing characteristics that define the people and organisations we have worked with.
Performing under pressure is something elite athletes do extremely well. Dealing with setbacks and disappointments is also something the best learn to handle well. As we learn to cope with unprecedented times at work and in our homes, we want to offer you in this Series three insights from the world of elite sport to help you think about what performance means at times like these, how to stay motivated and build resilience when things don’t go as planned. This Part 1 of the series focuses on sustaining motivation and purpose when things don’t go to plan.
Sustaining motivation and purpose
Through our work with the British Athletes Commission, we have come to know Lizzie Simmonds. Lizzie is a two-time Olympic swimmer and now has a portfolio of roles within the world of sport and business. In this short video, Lizzie takes a deep dive into motivations and purpose and considers why some of us are feeling a bit flat right now and what we can do about it. She shares some insights from the world of elite sport and explores some of the ways athletes maintain motivation during difficult times.
Our thanks to Lizzie for giving us permission to share this video with you. Lizzie is an excellent speaker and communicator and if you’d like her to fire up your team let us know and we’ll put you in touch.
If you found the content helpful, please share it with colleagues and others in your network. Our next blog will focus on performing under pressure.
