Most organizations are satisfied with good performance. Their leaders praise “continuous improvement,” which I define as a predictable, positive, incremental improvement in performance. It usually means an increase or a decrease––as in, an increase in productivity or a decrease in incidents––achieved by augmenting systems and behaviors already in place, and prompted by good management.

That’s fine. But some groups crave more––something beyond good. Leaders of these teams frame getting better in terms of going from good to great. These are performance breakthroughs that were seen as improbable. Again, these results are an increase or a decrease, but they differ from the majority in that they’re thanks to a considerable change in paradigms, systems, or behaviors, or sparked by an innovation, invention, or discovery, all of which was stimulated by excellent leadership.

A smaller collection of modern organizations push even further to achieve what I call performance transformation. In some cases, their business demands this extraordinary level of performance, but most often, these groups seek results that are beyond great because that’s exactly what their leader wants.

Yes––leaders are that powerful.

Leaders of performance transformation share traits with leaders who take their teams from good to great, but differentiate themselves from that pack in several key ways:

1. They seek a big game to play and lead. 

“I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to earth.”

––President John F. Kennedy

2. They envision a better future and exist, speak, and act as if they are already living in it. 

“I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.”

––Reverend Martin Luther King

3. They see their business as much more than a business. It is a movement to make the world better.

“We teach young men life skills through baseball. We intend that as adults, the awareness and tools they learn from us will make them better husbands, fathers, and citizens. We understand that baseball is for a season, character is for life.”

––Trent A. Reynolds, Founder and President of Trent Reynolds Player Development

4. They are extraordinarily driven, courageous, and adventurous.

“Never forget that life can only be nobly inspired and rightly lived if you take it bravely and gallantly, as a splendid adventure in which you are setting out into an unknown country, to face many a danger, to meet many a joy, to find many a comrade, to win and lose many a battle.”

––Annie Besant

I call these special women and men All-In™ Leaders, and I am their coach.

Performance transformation is a quest. A group shoulders the journey together, shepherded by a rare leader. The alliance and undertaking prompt a momental shift in every individual, resulting in unprecedented degrees of performance once thought unobtainable, and always in service of the future betterment of all concerned. It’s one of the most difficult challenges a leader can take on, and make no mistake: the transformation cannot happen without an All-In Leader.

All-In Leaders are 21st-century pacesetters, architects of extraordinary performance, and promoters of humanity in the workplace. They apply human-based influencing and decision making to ensure that they––and the companies they lead––are in harmony with profitability, sustainability, and safe, meaningful work for their employees. All-In Leaders possess a unique set of characteristics, realizations, and skills that enable them to inspire others to follow them. Once enrolled, these followers will do the heavy lifting that realizes the future originally envisioned by the leader.

Interested in learning more? Read about my method and make plans to attend the next All-In Leader Summit, where business executives, rising leaders, and those who coach them become and learn how to push others to be All-In Leaders. You’ll be trained and certified in All-In Performance Transformation, my methodology that makes futuristic dreams reality.

You have nothing to lose but the mediocre results that deep down, you know you’re too great to accept.