#12 | Trapped in the comfort zone. And how to free ourselves from that

Generation Z is no longer willing to perform?! They just curl up in their comfort zone of smartphone, tablet and social media, and are simply not what we would call high-performers. But is that really true? In our latest podcast, the systemic coach Andreas Kuffner and Georgiy Michailov, Managing Partner with Struktur Management Partner, explore this question, and discuss how we can create a good framework for performance and success for ourselves and others.

In principle, the current generation of young adults is of course capable of performance, but the system in which they have grown up does not encourage them to perform, says the former competitive athlete and expert in team development. And so it is our task to create structures and new approaches that really inspire children and young people. Not through pressure and doggedness, but nevertheless with a certain discipline, and always in an environment that provides psychological security. This is also important for our annual New Year’s resolutions, says Kuffner. The mistake we tend to make is that the resolutions are usually way too ambitious, and the pressure thus too great. We must get used to thinking in small steps, and to deriving stamina and strength for all our plans and resolutions from the small successes we experience. Because it is these small successes that give us the self-confidence to continue, to master difficult situations, and to proceed with courage.  Olympic rowing eight champion Kuffner is well-placed to know this. Because even that ultimate goal of Olympic gold needed lots of small successes along the way to maintain his motivation at a high level.  This is of course also where a good team can help. A team in which it is not about being the best yourself, but in which you want to achieve the best you can together as a team. Of this the team player Andreas Kuffner is absolutely sure. 

And if we then also get into the habit of asking what exactly we are doing things for, rather than just calling them into question, we will advance, we will perform. The ways and recipes there are for this, why our experiences strengthen us, and how good relationships can help us to create something new – this is what Andreas Kuffner and Georgiy Michailov are going to discuss in the next 50 minutes.

*Video only in German