{"product_id":"the-performance-paradox-isbn-9780593356920","title":"The Performance Paradox","description":"\u003cb\u003eDiscover how to balance learning and performing to bolster personal and team success with this revolutionary guide from a world-renowned expert on growth mindset.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e“An essential read for fostering learning, performance, and a growth mindset . . . I wholeheartedly recommend it.”—Carol Dweck, bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eMindset\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA Next Big Idea Club Must Read • Stevie Awards Gold Winner • Non Fiction Book Awards Gold Winner • Axiom Awards Silver Medalist • Shortlisted for the BookPal Outstanding Works of Literature Award and the Thinkers50 Breakthrough Idea Award\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTo succeed in a fast-changing world, individuals and companies know they must create a culture of growth, where experimentation and feedback are encouraged, and learning is integrated into the everyday. Yet we often get stuck in a well-worn pattern of habits that don’t move us forward. Why?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBecause many of us get trapped in the \u003cb\u003ePerformance Paradox\u003c\/b\u003e: the counterintuitive phenomenon that if we focus only on performing, our performance suffers.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eHow can we give ourselves the space to experiment and grow while also delivering high-level results?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFostering growth mindset to elevate performance is Eduardo Briceño’s specialty. As CEO of Mindset Works and in his work with Fortune 500 companies, he discovered that mastering growth—personal, organizational, and financial—hinges on navigating the crucial balance between learning and performing.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIn \u003ci\u003eThe Performance Paradox\u003c\/i\u003e, Briceño reveals how to\u003cbr\u003e• avoid falling into the chronic performance trap that stagnates growth\u003cbr\u003e• identify when and how to unlock the power of mistakes\u003cbr\u003e• integrate learning into daily habits in ways that stick\u003cbr\u003e• lead teams that constantly improve and outperform their targets\u003cbr\u003e• grow your skill level and output simultaneously and for the long term\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003eWe can achieve more tomorrow than we do today if we develop the belief that we can change and the competence for how to change. With Briceño’s innovative and refreshing framework of balancing learning and performing, individuals and companies can reach their boldest aspirations.“The ideas and strategies in \u003ci\u003eThe Performance Paradox\u003c\/i\u003e are powerful foundations for building a culture of change, innovation, and growth in a fast-moving world.”\u003cb\u003e—Immanuel Hermreck, Chief Human Resources Officer and member of the Executive Board, Bertelsmann\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e“Essential reading for anyone seeking to do less, but achieve more.”\u003cb\u003e—Greg McKeown, author of the \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestsellers \u003ci\u003eEssentialism \u003c\/i\u003eand \u003ci\u003eEffortless,\u003c\/i\u003e and creator of \u003ci\u003eThe Essentialism Planner\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e“Eduardo Briceño offers invaluable insights and equips readers with the essential skills and techniques needed to embrace a growth mindset, find wisdom in mistakes, and understand the delicate balance between learning and performance.”\u003cb\u003e—Kathleen Hogan, Chief People Officer of Microsoft\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“With the rate of change increasing rapidly in our economy and society, all businesses and organizations need their people at every level to have the will and the skill to learn continuously. \u003ci\u003eThe Performance Paradox \u003c\/i\u003eshows how this can happen and why it matters. It’s essential—and inspiring—reading for these times.”\u003cb\u003e—Daniel Porterfield, President \u0026amp; CEO of the Aspen Institute\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e“[\u003ci\u003eThe Performance Paradox]\u003c\/i\u003e not only enlightens but also equips readers, teams, and organizations to drive continuous improvement, innovation, and change.”\u003cb\u003e—Nir Eyal, author of \u003ci\u003eIndistractable: How to Control Your Attention and Choose Your Life\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“The insights Eduardo offers in this book can change your career. I can't recommend this book highly enough.”\u003cb\u003e—Tomer Cohen, Chief Product Officer, LinkedIn\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“\u003ci\u003eThe Performance Paradox \u003c\/i\u003e. . . offers a much-needed methodology for performance improvement in today’s dynamic workplaces and should become a leadership and business-improvement classic.”\u003cb\u003e—Steven Howard, Founder, Caliente Leadership\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e“Full of fresh perspectives, unconventional solutions and big ideas to transform you and your workplace.”\u003cb\u003e—SHRM (Society for Human Resource Management)\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“\u003ci\u003eThe Performance Paradox \u003c\/i\u003e. . . will guide your journey toward building world-class competencies, resilience, and impact.”\u003cb\u003e—Carol Dweck, bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eMindset\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“More than anyone I know, Eduardo Briceño has devoted himself to bringing academic research on mindsets into the everyday lives of learners of all ages. His passion and optimism are contagious, and in every interaction, I come away inspired.”\u003cb\u003e—Angela Duckworth, \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eGrit\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“I dare you to read \u003ci\u003eThe Performance Paradox\u003c\/i\u003e without rushing to apply it.”\u003cb\u003e—Mónica Guzmán, author of \u003ci\u003eI Never Thought of It That Way\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“If you’re tired of running in circles and not making any meaningful progress toward your goals\u003ci\u003e, The Performance Paradox\u003c\/i\u003e is the book you need to read.”\u003cb\u003e—Marshall Goldsmith, PhD, \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eWhat Got You Here Won’t Get You There\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“A go-to playbook for developing thriving workplaces and lives . . .”\u003cb\u003e—Chip Conley, bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eWisdom at Work\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eEduardo Briceño\u003c\/b\u003e is a global keynote speaker, facilitator, and program provider who supports organizations in developing cultures of learning and high performance. Earlier in his career, he was the co-founder and CEO of Mindset Works, the first company to offer growth mindset development services. Previously, he was a venture capital investor with the Sprout Group. His TED, Talk How to Get Better at the Things You Care About, and his prior TEDx Talk, The Power of Belief, have been viewed more than nine million times. He is a Pahara-Aspen Fellow, a member of the Aspen Institute’s Global Leadership Network, and an inductee in the Happiness Hall of Fame.\u003cb\u003eChapter 1: The Performance Paradox\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBig idea While it might seem counterintuitive, constantly performing does not improve our performance. The route to success is often not a straight line.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAnjali felt her palms grow sweaty every time her manager Salma asked, “Can I offer some feedback?”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“No!” She wanted to scream. “I’m already working as hard as I can!”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIndeed, she was, and since joining the company, she’d received positive feedback from managers and direct reports alike.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBut she’d never had a manager who was also so up-­front about areas where she could improve—­and it was usually the logistical components of her job, which she rarely had time to stay on top of. Anjali viewed herself as an attentive, hands-­on person who always put her customers first, and if she had to choose between taking a customer’s call and updating the company’s database, she’d pick the phone call 100 percent of the time.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTalking to Salma made her feel like a kid again, like she couldn’t get it right.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe next time Salma uttered that dreaded F-­word—­feedback—­and started offering suggestions on how she could do things differently, Anjali couldn’t hold back. “I’m already working as hard as I can!”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAfter a brief but painful pause, Salma smiled at her.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Anjali, no one wants you to work any harder. We want to figure out how we can make things easier for you.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAnjali had never thought about it like that—­she assumed all of the feedback was a veiled warning that her job was in jeopardy.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWhen the phone rang, Gino Barbaro always leaped to answer it.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIf he saw a bartender or waiter reaching for the receiver, he would shoo them away; after all, this was his restaurant, his reputation, his name. At Gino’s Trattoria, if he wanted something done right, he needed to do it himself.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThat’s how Gino approached pretty much everything at the restaurant. Each day his mind would bounce around to whatever needed to be done next—­taking orders over the phone, managing the kitchen staff, ordering supplies and ingredients, cleaning, keeping on top of financial transactions, locking up at night.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eHe didn’t trust anyone to do these things as well as he would, and he didn’t have the time to train them.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eDuring the 2008 recession, the restaurant started to lose money. Gino responded by putting in extra hours to make sure everything was executed “perfectly,” but it soon became apparent that that wasn’t enough to keep the restaurant afloat. After twelve years of seventy-­hour weeks, he was exhausted and couldn’t envision working even harder to cut costs or promote the business to get out of this hole—­there weren’t enough hours in the day to stop and think about what to try differently. Something had to change.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThere had to be a way to run a business that didn’t leave him miserable, scrambling for time, and burnt out.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eDouglas Franco was tapped by Peruvian investment firm Enfoca to change the trajectory of its new acquisition, iEduca, a Lima-­based higher education company that offers courses for adults. The investment firm thought that a change in leadership would enable iEduca to grow faster.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eUpon joining the company as CEO, Douglas observed that his new colleagues—­especially those on the executive team—­seemed to believe they were already optimizing the business. Douglas worried that this attitude was causing the company to stagnate and preventing the team from experimenting with new ideas.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTo accelerate growth, iEduca would need to find new ways of doing things.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFrustrated and feeling pressure to deliver success to his investors, Douglas tried to encourage his new colleagues to think critically about opportunities for improvement. But his frustration was met with resistance. His team members dug in their heels and kept trying to prove themselves, rather than improve.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThen, when the pandemic broke out, student enrollment plummeted and revenues collapsed.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThis was not how Douglas had envisioned his new chapter. He had to find a way to get his team to stop trying to impress him and start working with him to find new solutions—­and the clock was ticking.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWe’ll come back to Anjali, Gino, and Douglas later, but now that you’ve heard a bit about their challenges, let me tell you about mine.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eEarly in my career, I was the youngest investment professional at the Sprout Group—­then one of the oldest and largest venture capital firms in the world. I loved being exposed to different executive teams, industries, and companies at the leading edge of innovation, and I had the exciting opportunity to serve on boards of directors alongside much more experienced and knowledgeable investors and operators.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBut when I think back on those days, what I remember most vividly is the incredible pressure I felt to perform.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWe regularly sat in meetings listening to startup teams pitch their ventures. When the entrepreneurs stepped out of the room, we’d take turns voicing our impression of the opportunity. As a very junior professional just starting my career, I didn’t know enough to have a strong conviction about whether an investment was attractive, but I pretended to.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAs my colleagues shared their views, I would try to decide what to advocate for. When my turn came, I left my conflicting thoughts and uncertainties unspoken to make it appear that all of my thinking pointed in one direction and that I had high confidence in my recommendation. I would pick a side—­to engage in due diligence or turn down the opportunity, or to invest or not—­and advocate for it with certainty.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI realized that by not sharing some of my thoughts, I was withholding information that could have helped us make better decisions. This caused me anxiety because I wanted to help our team, but I was handcuffed by my belief that I needed to appear knowledgeable, decisive, and confident of my opinions.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAfter years of this, I got very good at looking like I knew what I was doing, but inside I felt disingenuous and inauthentic. I was constantly pretending.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eEventually, the chronic stress of these feelings affected my body physically. Under constant pressure, I kept my muscles contracted, so much that, eventually, they lost their ability to relax. It turns out that muscles are malleable, for better or for worse! Mine became shorter and harder, preventing blood from penetrating them and delivering the nutrients needed for proper functioning and healing.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIt became painful for me to use my hands—­to type, use the computer mouse, drive a car, open doors, even brush my teeth. After seeing many specialists, I was finally diagnosed with a repetitive strain injury called myofascial pain syndrome.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAs time went on, my condition grew worse. I met people with the same affliction who could no longer use their hands for more than ten minutes a day, and it terrified me.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI was determined to do all I could to heal.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBut I suspected that what I needed to change was more than just my posture.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eStuck in chronic performance\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThough the stories differ, Gino, Anjali, Douglas’s colleagues, and I were all suffering from the same condition, one I call chronic performance: the constant attempt to get every task done as flawlessly as possible, and then some.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMaybe parts of our stories sound familiar to you?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAre you always racing to check tasks off a list?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eDo you spend most of your time trying to minimize mistakes?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eDo you suppress your uncertainties, impressions, or questions to try to appear like you always know what you’re doing?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWould you rather walk over hot coals than get feedback?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThese are all signs of chronic performance. While it may seem like minimizing mistakes is a reasonable use of our time or that appearing decisive is a wise career strategy, these habits can have a devastating impact on our skills, confidence, jobs, and personal lives.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eChronic performance could be the reason you might be feeling stagnant in some area of your life. You might be working more hours or putting more effort into tasks, yet you never seem to get ahead. Life feels like a never-­ending game of catch-­up. That’s chronic performance—­throwing more energy at tasks and problems yet staying at the same level of effectiveness.Unleash growth and results; Create an unstoppable culture; Harness the power of mistakes; Outperform your targets","brand":"Ballantine Books","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":48233728016613,"sku":"NP9780593356920","price":20.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9780593356920.jpg?v=1767740937","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/products\/the-performance-paradox-isbn-9780593356920","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}