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Powerhouse (noun): somebody who is full of energy, highly effective, and therefore very productive.

There is so much you want to get done in a day and modern life is making ever more demands. Adding to your desire for a successful career, a fulfilled private life and some form of lifetime achievement you can be proud of are all of the pressures of living and interacting socially.

Yet the one thing modern technology has not given us – and will almost certainly never provide – is more time. So the answer must be ever greater levels of productivity.

Is it any surprise therefore that many people's bookshelves are groaning with productivity and time saving manuals, and that bloggers and coaches are offering a constant stream of tips and advice? Oh no! More things to add to your reading list.

Time management and greater productivity are not the answer. The answer is not about how much you can do, but what you do and how you do it. If you choose the right things to do, and you do them in the right way, you will be productive. But not just ‘lots of stuff done-productive': you will be ‘effective-productive'.

The difference is essential: getting lots of stuff done means nothing unless the stuff you do matters. That is what effectiveness is about: about doing what matters; what will make a difference that counts.

What Does it Mean to Be a ‘Powerhouse'?

Effective action defines Powerhouse. But one thing that you won't find in this book is a single definition of what being a Powerhouse means. It means far more than one thing and goes beyond the normal day-to-day meaning of effectiveness:

effective (adjective): causing the desired result, successful, able to deliver what matters.

It is a mentality and approach that delivers outstanding productivity and exceptional outcomes, and makes a vivid, lasting, and positive impression on the people around you.

Becoming a Powerhouse means:

• Choosing to do the right things.

• Doing the right things for the right reasons.

• Doing the right things right.

• Working with the people around you.

• Getting the best from the people around you.

• Getting the best from yourself.

• Being prepared for the unexpected.

• Handling the unexpected.

• Knowing when and how to stop.

• Extending your Powerhouse capabilities to your whole organization.

These definitions form the agenda for this book. Over the next ten chapters, you will learn how to bring full effectiveness to everything you do. Each chapter will also show you how to turn up one of ten Power Switches, to transform yourself – and your organization – into a Powerhouse.

Chapter 1: Self-Control: Choose to Do the Right Things

The first step is to identify and evaluate all of your opportunities. Then, decide which ones to pursue. Let these become your compelling causes, and focus almost exclusively on them. This is about self-control.

Master Switch: Self-Control

Chapter 2: Judgement: Do the Right Things for the Right Reasons

You need to be clear why you are pursuing each of your compelling causes, for two reasons – personal and organizational. The organizational reason is that you will almost certainly be accountable for how you will be using your time and spending your resources, and the personal reason is that we all need to know the answer to the question ‘why?’ Without a reason, there is no motivation. We'll cover how to justify your choices and learn about judgement.

Power Switch: Judgement

Chapter 3: Productivity: Do the Right Things Right

Now is the time to think about how you are going to accomplish what you set out to do. This is about productivity and Chapter 3 splits this into four stages: planning, preparing, performing and postparing. Don't worry if you haven't heard the word ‘postparing' – neither had I before I started work on this book.

Power Switch: Productivity

Chapter 4: Relationships: Work With the People Around You

You need to be able to enlist the support of the people around you: colleagues, team-members, bosses, suppliers and customers. Their active support will be a big factor in your success. And it is not just dealing with opposition that is important; it is positive support. So we will look at how you can build support for your work in Chapter 4. This is about relationships.

Power Switch: Relationships

Chapter 5: Leadership: Get the Best From the People Around You

More than support, you may also need active help. Decide which people with what skills you will need, engage their help, and give them the leadership that will get the best from them. This will be our agenda for Chapter 5.

Power Switch: Leadership

Chapter 6: Conduct: Get the Best From Yourself

The ways that you think and act will determine how effective you are in your choices, your productivity and in the way people regard you. This is all about your conduct.

Power Switch: Conduct

Chapter 7: Perception: Be Prepared for the Unexpected

Shift happens: are you able to anticipate it by reading people, seeing around corners and spotting risks? This is a matter of your perception.

Power Switch: Perception

Chapter 8: Resilience: Handle the Unexpected

Whether you spotted it or not, when shift happens, how will you respond to events? If you can keep going in the face of adversity, dealing with the challenges you encounter and keeping a feeling of calm and control, that's resilience.

Power Switch: Resilience

Chapter 9: Growth: Know When and Where to Stop

Of course, you need to know when to stop, but you must also know where to stop, so that your Powerhouse performance is a springboard for your next compelling cause. This demands the ability to grow with each experience.

Power Switch: Growth

In the final chapter, I will show you how to extend your Powerhouse capabilities to help the whole of your organization to become a Powerhouse Organization.

Chapter 10: Culture: Create a Powerhouse Organization

Can you take what you have learned and start to transform the whole organization around you? Wouldn't that be great? If you want to apply the Powerhouse principles strategically, to create a true Powerhouse culture, Chapter 10 will give you the places to start.

Organizational Power Switch: Culture

Each switch represents a capability that you can increase with learning and practice. As you turn all of the switches up to maximum, you will become a Powerhouse.

Ten switch console

What You Need to Become a Powerhouse

Becoming a Powerhouse requires a combination of mental attitude and a practical approach that balances different perspectives, focuses ruthlessly, yet remains adaptable in the face of changing circumstances. This requires a combination of efficiency, rigour and a survival edge. This is worthwhile, but not easy. Two things will help:

1. doing the right thing for you, and

2. being fit for Powerhouse performance.

1. Doing the Right Thing for You

Being a Powerhouse will come to you far more easily when you enjoy what you are doing, and are doing something you are good at. You choose the work that brings you joy, and the key lies at the intersection of:

• The things you love to do.

• The things you are good at.

• The things you like best about work.

Ten switch consoleThe key to the work that brings you joy

One of the main reasons we fail to achieve what we set out to do is not being clear enough about exactly what the outcome will look like if we do the right things. Always start by asking yourself: ‘what will success look like?’ So your first step is to define what you want to achieve with clarity and precision, defining success and being clear what it is for.

• What is most important about your job?

• Who does your work serve?

• What is your job really about?

• What do you want to achieve?

• What is your answer to ‘why'?

2. Get Fit for Powerhouse Performance

Fitter, healthier people perform better. Don't think that you can swallow this book whole and get instant results. You need to invest time, energy and perseverance. You also need to be fit for a Powerhouse lifestyle, investing in good rest, regular exercise and excellent nutrition.

Powerhouse performance rests on willpower. Modern research shows that this requires energy and as we go through the day willpower depletes, just as the batteries in your phone deplete. So to avoid your brain becoming mushy and your physical strength draining away, it is essential to make re-charging your energy levels a critical activity.

Good Rest

It is not just enough to go home at the end of the day. Make rest and relaxation a priority. Allow time for socializing, for laughing, for relaxing and, vitally, for sleep. Many people with a Powerhouse mind-set will find it hard to switch off at the end of the day. So take your sleep seriously: not by worrying about it, but by setting up the conditions for good sleep. Gradually wind down towards the end of your waking day, dim the lights, engage in more relaxing activities and refrain from stimulant drugs like caffeine (which makes sleeping more difficult) and alcohol (which may make you sleepy, but disrupts your sleep). Have your bed in a cool room with fresh air and, if necessary, write down anything that is on your mind before turning out the light.

Regular Exercise

A regular, moderate exercise regime will increase your resilience and give you a greater capacity for physical and mental effort. You may feel it will take up time in your day, but the amount of effective and productive time it will give you back makes short bouts of exercise an excellent investment. It is no coincidence that most of businesses' most successful and most effective people make time for half an hour of exercise during each working day.

Excellent Nutrition

A rushed meal of junk food at your desk is the cliché of modern office life. On the other hand, I hope I have already made the case for fresh air, exercise and a break – possibly some socializing. If you are going to work effectively and exercise too, your body will need good fuel to power it. Choose your food wisely and have things like nuts and fruit as your regular snacks.

Additional Resources

Powerhouse is a freestanding book with everything you need to become … a Powerhouse. But if you want a few extras, like templates for some of the tools, and maybe a few videos with key ideas, then take a look at the Powerhouse website, at www.beapowerhouse.co.uk.