By John Dunnery

Whether you’re a water polo player or a chess fanatic, a piano aficionado or an aspiring chef, there are times when you want to achieve peak performance. Perhaps you are taking a test, performing in a competition, or playing in a championship game. Maybe a special friend is coming over for dinner, or you’re attending a job interview. In all these situations – and many others that we face – you want to perform at the very highest level. Yet often such a goal seems difficult or impossible to attain. How can it be accomplished?

Here are five tips for achieving peak performance.

1. Make a conscious commitment to achieve excellence. The prize almost always goes to the competitor who decided it was worth winning. That decision sets the stage for the endless hours of practice, the willingness to learn whatever others can teach, and the commitment to get into top condition.

2. Practice, practice, practice. The top athletes always testify to the importance of practice. While sports commentators and fans rave about the natural ability of Michael Jordan or Wayne Gretzky or Derek Jeter, such superstar athletes invariably explain their success by talking about the hours they spent practicing while their peers were relaxing.

3. Learn from your teachers. Peak performance requires a healthy dose of humility. The humble person is willing to accept all the good advice he or she receives from teachers and coaches – and even from other competitors. Such a person is always eager to learn.

4. Stay in shape. As well as learning and practicing the thing you want to do well – the sport or art or profession – you need to develop overall fitness if you want to perform at the highest level. When your heart and lungs are running at peak efficiency, you’re prepared to compete in any arena.

5. Love the thing you do. A love for the game (or art or profession) is the basis of everything else. Loving the game makes the endless hours of practice, the humbling lessons, and the exhausting exercises worthwhile. The person who loves the game feels a powerful desire to excel in it.

Peak performance is never easy to achieve, but the achievement is immensely rewarding.