Clean Run Magazine - August 2008 - 5

Editorializing… The Science of Performance By Amy Hanridge One of my favorite quotes comes from business motivational speaker Jim Rohn: “Success is nothing more than a few simple disciplines, practiced every day; while failure is simply a few errors in judgment, repeated every day.” I have this quote taped to my desk and it guides me in my writing, dog agility training, mothering, and everyday life. I don’t heed these words daily, but I appreciate their wisdom as often as I can. I’m beginning to notice other people who are interested in the subjects of success and failure. For example, the surgeon and writer Atul Gawande has studied a topic referred to as the “science of performance.” He recently published a book called Better: A Surgeon’s Notes on Performance, which is about the drive to do better, despite human imperfections, and how this drive is so much more prevalent in the medical field, where human lives are at stake. I first heard Gawande on a podcast called “Science Talk,” produced by the magazine Scientific American. He talked about his book and about the science of performance. The point that impressed me most was Gawande’s discovery that in this day and age, success in surgery is no longer coming from innovation. Hospitals and surgical programs are achieving success through diligence—through applying well-known procedures diligently and repeatedly. For example, Gawande looked at something as basic as hand washing and noted that great surgical programs had clinicians who performed rigorous hand washings each and every time they were supposed to, that is, 100% of the time. It’s not that one surgeon is better at the simple act of hand washing. Rather, it’s that in the haste of the day, a great surgeon who concentrates on excellent outcomes in surgery doesn’t cut corners on anything, even something as simple as hand washing. The successful surgeon is diligent. This applies to so many areas of my life—how I perform as a writer, parent, dog agility handler, spouse, citizen of the world. Do I pay attention to details? Am I diligent, or do I cut corners? I certainly see diligence in the great dog agility handlers. They pay attention to every detail relevant to their dogs’ learning—on and off the course. A successful dog agility trainer doesn’t pay attention to her dog’s learning only when at a trial, on a course, or when practicing at home. A great trainer pays attention to what her dog is learning every moment of every day. She is diligent about everything she does with her dog, and that is what makes her successful. Amy Hanridge Amy Hanridge lives in the cool pines of Eastern Arizona with her husband, daughter, and four dogs. She is completing her master of fine arts degree in writing and competes in dog agility with her Border Collie Rio. Amy writes about parenting, writing, and dog agility on her blog at www.wishythewriter.com. August 08 | Clean Run

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Clean Run Magazine - August 2008

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Clean Run Magazine - August 2008