High Achievers in Government
Susanne Rix
Have you ever wondered what makes a high achiever tick? Are they so different from you and me? Why do some get to the top and others not? Is it luck, birth, family, money or simply sheer determination?
Recent studies have revealed that high achievers have qualities that can be learned. Brains and luck have their place - but so do a range of behaviours that can be developed in us all.
If Australia is to move towards being a clever country, we need to understand the qualities of high achievers. We need more than simple training in work-related skills. We need to know how to bring out the best in each individual. Everyone at every level of an organisation needs to be a high achiever.
In 10 - 20 years time the heads of departments, the people leading us through the maze of ever-increasing change, will be selected from the potential high achievers presently sitting behind lower and middle ranking government desks. Who will they be? What are they doing now? What are the characteristics that will get them to the top? Why, when we all have the potential to achieve so much more than we do, do so few reach the top? What are their qualities and what can we do to develop them in more people?
The answers can be found amongst the recent studies of high achievers, particularly amongst the studies that focus on the individuals who achieve against all odds. This doesn't mean simply financial achievement, or the achievement of power and status. Some of the studies include people who manage to combat cancer - the achievement of survival against all odds. Others look at people who have maintained sanity during extended periods of solitary confinement. Those who are superior managers, successful entrepreneurs, charismatic leaders, change masters, accomplished professionals, innovative specialists - ie exceptional people.
In government, they are the leaders who not only forge a successful organisation, but inspire their team to leaps in productivity, and to innovative change. They exist at all levels of government. Some of them reach the pinnacle of high office. Some achieve within the constraints of unwieldy bureaucracy far more than they were prepared for by their education or background. It appears that high achievers are not so different from the rest of us. Extraordinary achievers are ordinary people who have found the keys to themselves. The keys to bringing out the best in themselves without the sacrifice of health, well being and lifestyle (see below).
The research reveals that there is no single factor that sets high achievers apart - but there is a pattern of behaviours. And the good news is that these behaviours are not genetic but learned. Behaviours such as stress hardiness, mentoring, bi-modal thinking, goal setting, mental agility, change management, course correction, self confidence, acceptance of failure, self mastery, and more. Behaviours we can all emulate to begin to tap into our true potential.
To date most of the studies have been conducted overseas. However the evidence being collected amongst Australian organisations reveals that Australian business and government leaders largely fit the model of high achiever behaviour identified overseas. Mentoring is an example. Mentoring is emerging as a new component for manager training but it is not new to the high achievers. The studies reveal that mentoring is a significant predictor of career success for both the high flyers and the steady track achiever. Question any achievers here on the subject and there is usually an affirmative answer.
Noel Tanzer, head of Administrative Services responded to the question with "having mentors is part of the game. In Brisbane there were a couple of people on whom I would like to model myself. Part of the wrenching process was to cut the umbilical cord. When I arrived in Canberra I looked around for such people. You can't do without them."
Tony Aires, head of Defense gives a similar response. "There have been various mentors at various times. For example, Neil Townsend. When I was advising in welfare in the Prime Ministers department, Neil pushed me hard in a direction I wouldn't have taken otherwise. He told me I could do anything."
It is not surprising that mentoring is rising as a popular management strategy. Not only is it a consistent trait amongst high achievers, but when potential achievers are placed with suitable mentors on which to model their behaviour, there are rapid leaps in achievement. Studies in the USSR with talented children placed in the care of achievers in the identified area of talent - consistently surpass their 'mentor' in development within 10 years.
The new wave of training in whole brain or 'bi-modal' thinking is not new to the high achievers either. Bi-modal thinking - often revealed in those 'intuitive flashes' - is another characteristic that is common to high achievers.
Gary Sturgess, head of the Premiers Department in NSW reveals "To be able to pick trends is a vital characteristic in this game, so intuition is absolutely necessary - Even in picking what I wanted to do [in life] I relied on that gut feeling"
Noel Tanzer - 'Intuition is often the embryonic thing that starts a course of action. Like ways of handling management in times of change."
Tony Aires calls it "the end of nose judgement" and recognises "it's really judgment based on experience and your own perception."
Unfortunately, while we all the have ability to make judgments based on our extensive store of experiences and subtle perceptions, most people don't trust their intuition. This is partly due to the complex pattern of associations that are being made, the difficulty of identifying the processing of information that leads to the "intuitive conclusion" and widely held misconceptions about the true nature of the intuitive process.
Fortunately, this kind of thinking can be developed. It is just one of a range of strategies now being incorporated in the new wave of management training programs slowly finding their way into Australian organisations.
In future articles, the high achiever attributes will be explored further. Using the high achiever model together with examples from government and industry, we will examine the behaviours and more importantly - ways in which those attributes can be developed. As well as mentoring and bi-modal thinking we will look at a range of easily learned behaviours that can help (or impede) progress.
Everyone can achieve leaps in their personal accomplishments and initiate change without sacrifice of wellbeing. Not all of us want to be leaders, but we all want to be the best we can at what we do. Studies have revealed that there has frequently been a point of intervention, a turning point that takes an individual from the road of mediocrity to the path of high achievement. That creates a leap in their ability to accomplish more, effectively and in less time without the pressure of self-induced stress.
We can learn to initiate the same changes within ourselves. As a chief executive, manager or supervisor you can learn to provide that point of intervention into the lives of your staff. Australia needs more high achievers now, people at all levels of government working at their best. Getting the best out of themselves whether as fast track high flyers or the quiet achiever. Managers, supervisors, chief executives bringing out the best in themselves and those around them.
The high achievers are the key. Not just because of what they do but of what we can learn from the way they do it.
High achievers don't need to sacrifice their health and wellbeing to get to the top.
A study by Kobassi and Maadi revealed that 'stress hardy' executives were characterised by a strong commitment to self, work, family and a range of other important values outside work. Further, that regular exercise and strong social support were critical factors in predicting resistance to stress.
Their findings revealed that hardiness, exercise and social support combined to protect the health of executives under stress as shown in the following table.
Likelihood of illness developing in stressed executives:
- No resistant resources 93%
- One resistant resource 72%
- Two resistant resources 58%
- Three resistant resources <8%
(Resistant Resources: Hardiness, exercise, social support)
Susanne Rix is an industrial psychologist and training consultant. She is presently working with a number of major organisations and the Australian Institute of Management conducting training programs for high achievers.
