Learning or Performance Enhancement: Which Is It?

• Accurate self-awareness.
• Self-confidence.
• A steward-like relationship with colleagues and stakeholders.
• Trustworthiness.
• Transparency and authenticity (perceived by others as an “open book”).
• Mastery of self (composure, self-control and/or grace under pressure).
• Flexibility and a welcoming attitude regarding change.
• Passionate interest in learning and achievement.
• Consistently optimistic and resilient.
• Organizationally astute.
• Empathy as a teacher/mentor.
• Inspiring as a role model.

Good luck trying to “teach” these EQ characteristics, skills and behaviors in a series of “leadership and teamwork” seminars. It can’t be done. However, they can be nurtured, encouraged and developed in high-potential individuals. In fact, that’s a fundamental requirement for any company that seeks to build a performance-centric culture. The entire process pivots on an organization’s ability to move its people — all of them — into an environment in which meaningful personal and team contributions to the enterprise are esteemed, supported and rewarded.

Becoming a High-Performing Organization
Common sense dictates that since an organization’s people drive its performance, the process of enhancing that performance must be focused entirely on people, by refining their behavior in a strategic way. Fairly obvious, right? But it’s at this point that many companies begin to lose the way. They mistakenly believe the key to leveraging the behavioral routines of their people is through education-centered models. They either forget or never learned this well-established fact: Adults simply do not take in new information quickly or easily. Additionally, and even more importantly, the acquisition of knowledge rarely leads to lasting behavioral changes.

Again, when it comes to successfully creating a high-performance organization, the emphasis has to be on changing behavioral and interpersonal strategies, not teaching and learning. It’s an individual process that varies from organization to organization. Each company needs to find its own way to catalyze the collective passion, enthusiasm and potential of its people and then harness it to serve the enterprise’s larger strategic goals. But in the end, this is accomplished one person at a time.