The People Who Perform Better At A Higher Level Approach

Some people may perform better at a higher level rather than at a lower level. This is an approach that can sometimes be used when helping a person to do superb work. Let’s look at some examples.

A football club signed an international midfielder from another country. They then started him in a reserve team match against a lower league team.

The player was like a fish out of water. He kept watching the ball fly over his head, found it difficult to play with his teammates and was unable to influence the game.

One week later he made his Premier League debut against one of the top teams in the country. The player performed superbly. He controlled the midfield and made a strong contribution to the team’s victory.

What happened? He was in his element. The game was played at a higher technical level and his teammates were more in tune with where he wanted to pass the ball.

The player had risen through the system and had previously played well at a lower level. But he was now used to playing with teammates who operated on a higher level. He felt at ease on this stage and delivered fine performances.  

Some films portray a similar theme. A protagonist may be brilliant at tackling maths problems, for example, but find it difficult to fit into institutions they don’t respect. They amy function better at Harvard than in their old high school.

Some people can be helped to find a place where they are in their element – at ease and yet able to excel. They can also be helped to find ways to avoid or manage situations where they are uncomfortable.

A similar approach can be used when working with challenging young people. During my early career, I often gave leadership roles to individuals who sometimes caused problems when working in a team.

The key was to outline their responsibilities and the overall Dos and Don’ts. Many rose to the occasion. They functioned better when invited to take a higher level of responsibility and to deliver the goods.

Let’s return to your own life and work. Can you think of a situation where you may want to follow elements of this approach? How could you do this in your own way?

This could involve working at a higher level in your own profession or helping a person to take this step. If you wish, try tackling the exercise on this theme. This invites you to complete the following sentences.