The pulse of high performance

Sometimes it feels like there is a razor edge between peak performance and total overwhelm.

I'm grooving along in the pleasant hum of a full, engaged life. Then I look up (it usually feels all of a sudden) and life has become chaotic and almost out of control - a “how am I going to get to tomorrow in one piece?!?” kind of affair.

In these moments I’m not my best self.

I start making choices out of fear or panic rather than hope and insight.

In these moments, my full potential feels a million miles away.

In order to have the full impact we long to have, it’s good to have a strategy or two that keeps us in that groovy hum rather than tumbling towards chaos.

The basic idea behind this strategy is that our nature, our bodies, and our instincts are rhythm based. If we work within these natural cycles and rhythms we can achieve peak performance.

If the peak performance talk seems a little much...then replace anywhere I say peak performance or full potential with the word EASE .. this technique works for that too!

So how do we tap into our natural daily rhythms?

I like the metaphor of breathing - creating a cycle of in breaths and out breaths throughout the day.

The “in breath” represents activities that require more effort, more concentration and focus.

You might enjoy them but they require maximum “will” - self control, self determination, etc… The adult part of you - the prefrontal cortex - needs to show up for these activities.

For me, right now: posting on Linked In, managing my email.

"Out breath" activities are restoring or refueling.

For me, right now: being outdoors, changing my posture (sitting to standing), meditation.

My in breath and out breath activities vary based on circumstance. If I have been spending a lot of time behind a desk, a trip to drop off packages at the post office can feel like an out-breath. But some days that same errand is a chore taking me away from something I would rather be doing so it’s an in-breath.

This is a personal choice - about how much effort and restoration an activity requires or provides. And the way you categorize an activity today may change tomorrow.

Look over your last week - which activities were in breaths v. out breaths?

The next thing is to introduce - as much as you can - a cycling between in and out breath activities. This is the rhythm.

Assume that the maximum you can sustain an in breath is 90 minutes - and this is probably only true if you are doing an in breath activity that requires concentration but is enjoyable. If it’s all effort, 90 minutes is not realistic.

As a starting point, add an out breath of 1 to 15 minutes after each in-breath period.

Then re-engage with in-breath type work for another cycle of 30, 60, or 90 minutes.

You might eventually start designing your calendar around this rhythm (hint, hint 😉).

I love to talk about this right now so if you want to break it down further, hit me back and message me here.

Love,

Marijke Ocean

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