10 Things I’ve Learned About High Performers

Today in 10 minutes or less, you’ll learn:

✔️ 10 traits of high performers

✔️ The 1 thing my leaders have in common

I’ve hired 50+ CEOs to run the companies and businesses I have invested in and owned through the years. ’Tis a lot.

Over that time, I have noticed a few things that all high performers have in common. Spoiler: They weren’t all business masterminds with overpriced MBAs and cutthroat instincts.

Instead they had BDE: Big Do-er Energy. Ha.

Today, I’ll share 10 lessons I’ve learned about how high performers think, and advice for how to spot these traits in an interview.

Pro tip: If you are looking to hire people to run the businesses you buy, check out Unconventional Acquisitions, where I teach people how to build wealth through ownership.

10 traits of high performers

#1 They focus on being impressive—not on impressing people

There’s a subtle but crucial difference between the two. One is internal, the other is external.

Winners prioritize self-respect over respect from others. And they know that virtue signaling will never equal results.

You want to pick the hire who cares more about results than Forbes magazine covers.

When hiring, ask questions like, “When did you make a really unpopular decision because you believed it was right?” You’ll find your people.

#2 They love what they do

People learn more, better and faster when they’re doing it for fun than they ever do out of requirement.

High performers do what they do because they love it.

One of my hires, Samuel, created his first product because he likes to spend his Friday nights coding and drinking craft beers. He doesn’t need a bonus structure to make him want to build.

That’s a winner.

#3 They strive to be the best. Period.

It doesn’t matter if you’re the CEO of a multimillion dollar company aiming for the Fortune 500, or if you’re the janitor aiming to make the floors so sparkling clean you can eat off of them.

If you don’t aim for the best work you can do, you won’t even be good.

For instance, my friend Sam Parr makes new writers copy 100 viral tweets—by hand. Then 100 viral short news articles. His best writer ever copied 1,000.

That’s the hire we want.

#4 They say "will" not "should"

It’s the difference between winning and wishing.

“I should work out today” < “I will work out today.”

“I should apply for a new job” < “I will apply for a new job.”

“I should stop eating like a stoned raccoon every night” < “I will stop eating like a stoned raccoon every night.” Not that I can relate or anything.

Sometimes I ask in interviews, “What are you hoping to accomplish this year?” Then I listen for whether they say, “I want to” or “I will.”

Find the I-willers.

#5 They write down goals

If you don’t write a goal down, it doesn’t really exist.

You will be 10x more productive if you get your goals down on paper or Google Doc or email or whatever else. Once you get your goals down, you’ll be able to reference that list and reprioritize daily.

This is as crucial psychologically as it is for utility. It’s criminal that only 34% of the population even writes goals.

So in interviews, I usually ask them to show me where they keep their goals and how they track them. No time for talkers.

#6 They embrace the haters

If you win at a high level, a portion of the population will hate you no matter what. Trust me. My DMs are proof.

Some people can’t handle the fact that others are more driven, motivated, and therefore more successful than them. Rather than do something about it, they just take a swig from the Haterade bottle and fire off their mean tweets.

Bottom line: If you’re pissing off the right people, you’re doing something right.

Nearly 2 of 3 Americans (62%) are afraid to express an unpopular opinion. The ones who aren't are the ones who change the world.

So sometimes I ask, “What do you think we are doing wrong as a company right now?”

This shows how much they care, what work they've done, and how willing they are to have tough conversations.

#7 They do 10x more than they consume

Hot take: When a successful person says they read two books a week or go through half a library every year, they’re full of BS. (Looking at you Bill Gates.) (Just kidding, I’m talking about Tai Lopez.)

The truth is, top performers spend most of their time doing things instead of passively consuming. Build, don’t mentally masturbate.

So, I like to ask them:

"What does your calendar look like?" Then have them show it to me. This tells me how they organize, spend their time, time block, etc. And what they truly enjoy doing.

#8 They zero in on the 20% that matters

You know the 80/20 rule: 80% of the value of something comes from just 20% of the effort. This is true in product sales, marketing, relationships...pretty much everywhere.

Top performers have a unique ability to zero in on the 20% that matters and capitalize on it.

I had a convo last week with a 20-year Hollywood producer named Levi. When I asked him how he keeps the crews on schedule and on budget he said, “Daily am meetings, daily pm async updates required from everyone on the team. No matter what. What gets measured gets managed.”

He’s a winner.

#9 They don’t take favors, they give

It's better to be owed than to owe.

(I’m starting to sound like a mafia boss.)

Be generous with your skills, and you’ll be amazed by how others respond in turn.

One of my best hires ever consulted with me for free for about 90 days. He wouldn’t let me pay him. Now he makes high 6 figures from me. Long term games, long term people.

#10 They're willing to take smart risks

Most humans unconsciously index heavily toward loss aversion. Very few are natural-born risk-takers.

If you are willing to take smart risks, that puts you ahead of everyone who’s too afraid to put some skin in the game and try in the first place.

Ben Horowitz (famous VC and billionaire) said, “If you’re going to eat shit, don’t nibble.” We’re looking for those who go hard at it.

In the interview, ask “What are you most proud of creating that no one else would have?” That’ll tell you what you need to know.

The 1 thing most of my leaders have in common

The people I’ve hired hold a lot of the traits you just read about—but there’s another thing, too. See if you can spot what they have in common:

• One was my therapist
• Another is my brother
• Another is a close friend
• Another was my cleaning lady
• Another was my coworker

Answer: They're everyday human beings.

They were just average people who happened to be high performers. I’d rather hire a single high performer with actual, real-world experience and skills than a dozen MBAs.

Unless you actually do the work and get the skills, all you have are expensive participation trophies.

If you’re reading this, that means you’re probably a high performer, too.

Now quit reading and start doing something.

Big Do-er energy,

- Codie

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