Many of us feel a gap between our ordinary lives and the extraordinary lives we wish to have. Fifty years ago, perhaps, it was easier to navigate the world and get ahead. The baseline for success was more straightforward: “Work hard. Play by the rules. Keep your head down. Don’t ask too many questions. Follow the leader. Take time to master something that will keep you around here.”
Then, twenty years ago, the baseline began to shift. “Work hard. Break the rules. Keep your head up—optimists win. Ask questions of the experts. You are a leader. Hurry up and figure it out.”
Today, for many, the baseline feels distant, blurred, almost unknowable. Gone are the days when our work was predictable and the expectations of those around us were “fixed.” Change accelerated. Now everything feels chaotic. Your boss, lover, or customer always wants something new, now. Your work isn’t as simple or siloed as it used to be. And if it is, the odds are a computer or a robot will soon replace you. To compound the stress, now everything is connected, so if you mess up one thing, it messes up an entire network of other things. Mistakes are no longer private affairs. They are public and global.
It’s a new world. Certainty is down, yet expectations are up. Instead of mantras about working hard, following the rules, keeping your head down or up, we have an unspoken but widely accepted norm: “Pretend you’re not working as hard, so your friends are impressed with your leisurely posts and photos at breakfast, but yes, work hard. Don’t wait for instruction, because there are no rules. Try to keep your head on, because it’s a madhouse here. Ask questions, but don’t expect anyone to know the answers. There are no leaders, because we all lead, so just find your groove for right now and add value. You’ll never figure anything out—just keep adapting, because tomorrow everything changes again.“
This isn’t just unsettling. Getting ahead amid the chaos feels like trying to run under ten feet of murky water. You can’t see where you’re going. You’re flailing about, but there’s no progress. You’re looking for help, an edge, a lifeline, anything, but you’re not finding any air or any stairs out. You had good intentions and a strong work ethic, but you don’t even know where to apply them. You have people counting on you, but you’re not sure which direction to point.
Even if you don’t feel as if you are drowning, you might sense that you are plateauing. Or maybe you have the sinking feeling that you’re about to be left behind. Sure, you’ve gotten ahead so far by sheer passion, guts, and hard work. You’ve climbed a few mountains. But the next questions are throwing you off: Where to now? How to go higher? Why are others climbing more quickly than I am? When, if ever, can I relax and set down some roots? Does it always have to feel like such a grind? Am I really living my best life?
What you need is a reliable set of practices for unleashing your greatest abilities. Study high performers and you will see that they have systems built into their days that drive their success. Systems are what separate the pro from the novice, and science from armchair philosophy. Without systems, you cannot test hypothesis, track progress, or repeatedly deliver exceptional results. In personal and professional development, these systems and procedures are, ultimately, habits. But which ones work?
* Source: High Performance Habits by Brendon Burchard