I am hearing this question more often than what you and I would think. It always surprises me that people – even old school corporate pros – are looking for shortcuts. I guess that it has something to do with the principle that suggests that we are looking to maximise our gains while making the minimum investment of time, money or labor and I get that, I understand it, but can we be honest for just a moment?

If you want to peak perform, if you want to tap into your full potential, if you want to be the one who creates the benchmarks in your field, how did you arrive at the absurd idea that there is a fast way to do that? Which clues do you have, what case studies did you read, what experiences are you carrying with you that made you believe that there is a shortcut to greatness? And by the way, what do you mean by shortcut? What do you mean by fast? How fast do you want it? Tomorrow? Now? Yesterday? How fast is fast for you?

Let’s go back to the question… “Is there a fast track way to achieve peak performance?”

YES! There is one. It is the one I – and so many others way greater than me – call as the road of the fundamentals. Do you want to peak perform? Do you want to be great? Master the fundamentals of your game. That’s all there is to it. Probably you will need to invest something around ten years of your life practicing with super high intensity and engagement those fundies, but this is the only existing shortcut to greatness. The alternative to that is speaking about greatness, reading about greatness, discussing about greatness, visualising, dreaming, wishing, hoping about greatness and I guarantee you that all these approaches will lead you to later rather than faster.

If you don’t believe me – and you have every right to do so – please check what John Wooden was doing. Do you know what Wooden – the greatest coach of the 20th century according to ESPN – did in the very first practice before he’d even let his players take the court? He was teaching them how to put on their socks. Yep! You read right. He was teaching them how to put on their socks. Why? Because he knew that the only way to greatness goes through the valley of the fundamentals. The absolute best players of the country were in front of the best coach and they weren’t allowed to touch the basketball, before their coach was certain that they knew how to wear their socks right.

Why you might ask? Because coach Wooden knew that championships are build on super solid foundations. And there is nothing more fundamental for a basketball player than knowing how to wear his socks. If he doesn’t, then he is in trouble. In big trouble actually because if he allows wrinkles in the socks he might get a blister in practice and then he’ll suffer during the game which means he won’t be great.

So for the last time… “Is there a fast track way to achieve peak performance?” Yes. Knowing how to wear your socks. Do you know how to wear your socks?

All my best,
Konstantinos Karypidis