HABITS OF THE TOP 1%:

EXECUTE WHILE OTHERS PROCRASTINATE

One afternoon years ago, I was having lunch with legendary golf coach Butch Harmon at Arnold Palmer’s Bay Hill Club & Lodge in Orlando, Florida. I asked Butch, who was coaching Tiger Woods at the time, what he thought separated Tiger from the other players he’d worked with on the PGA Tour. He quickly responded, “Tiger’s willingness and ability to take it to the course.” I asked Butch to explain further, and he pointed out how Tiger would execute on lessons so much more quickly than would others.

Butch described how Tiger would fly into Las Vegas to consult with Butch on his golf skills and with physical therapist, Keith Kleven, on his strength, flexibility, and conditioning. Tiger would depart with a clear plan of attack of what he needed to do to take his game to the next level. Upon returning home, Tiger would get to work turning these newly learned strategies into habits. Specifically, he would get up at 5 o’clock in the morning, run 4 miles, head to the gym to workout, and then spend the rest of the day at the golf course honing his skills.

Furthermore, Tiger would play tournaments where he could immediately expose new techniques and movements to the pressure of competition. In sport science, we refer to this stage of habit-formation as “transfer training” – one’s deliberate effort to develop skill via numerous repetitions with feedback under real-life “transfer” conditions (different lies, wind, competition, spectators, failure, etc.). Exposure to transfer conditions is essential to turning new learnings into fully formed habits.

Interestingly, Butch also pointed out that other PGA Tour players were not so willing to execute a change so quickly. They preferred instead to make changes during practice, but when it came to tournaments, they chose to revert to using their old habits. When Butch asked them “Why?” They would report that they were not yet confident in the things that they had not yet mastered. Their plan was to master the skills in practice, and once they gained confidence in them, introduce them in tournaments.

Herein lies the dilemma – how do you ever truly master a new habit if you don’t expose it to transfer conditions?

The answer is “you don’t!” Again, executing new learnings in real life conditions is essential to building habits.

So, what does this sport science lesson have to do with financial services?

How many times have you sat through a workshop, jotted down pages of notes of best practices, walked out the door inspired, only to get back to work, get distracted, and fall right back into your own patterns of doing business?

Without deliberate execution in real-life circumstances, these best practices remain notes on a page.

To turn best practices into sustainable habits, you must, like Tiger Woods, execute while others procrastinate. You must take what you’ve been taught and as soon as possible engage in transfer training by practicing new behaviors repeatedly over time under real-life circumstances. Habits are then formed as your brain associates positive outcomes with these repeated behaviors.

Consider the best practices that you’ve been exposed to over the past few workshops you’ve attended (e.g., transitioning to advisory, tax optimization strategies, alternative investment considerations, team development, business growth ideas)? Which of these remained notes on a page and which did you act upon? Are there any that you wished you had executed, but didn’t? If so, it’s not too late. Use the reading of this blog to catalyze your action and put that best practice back on the front burner.

Unfortunately, we are not all as self-motivated and driven as Tiger Woods. He certainly is an outlier who has gone above and beyond what most are willing to do. The rest of us mere mortals may need a bit more support.

So, below are a few strategies that you might consider to help you execute when you find yourself procrastinating.

Plan Your Day – take the first 30 minutes of each day and jot down specifically what you intend to accomplish by day’s end. Make sure that the activities you’ve listed directly link to your business goals (increased referrals, greater wallet share, team efficiency, etc.).

Time Block – schedule recurring time in your calendar to engage in transfer training (e.g., a set time each day or week to employ a developing best practice to real life – with clients, prospects, centers of influence, strategic partners, or team members.

Partner with a Colleague – solicit a colleague to be your accountability partner who you will meet with each week to review one another’s activity and progress.

Leverage the Support of Managers and Specialists – set up a monthly Zoom / Teams / WebEx call with a manager or firm specialist to solicit their assistance in developing your skills.

Hire a Coach – source and hire a business coach who will work closely with you to develop the skills, team structure, systems, and processes needed to get to the next level.