To succeed in business, you need to know when it is peak performance time - the highs and the ups and when it is low performance time - the lows and the downs. Then, and only then, can you strategize to turn down time into peak performance gold.

Let's start with the highs, peak performance activities. The most obvious high, or peak performance activity in my business, the speaking business, is regularly getting up in front of a group of people and speaking my passion, sharing my knowledge, growing people and being gratefully applauded.

There are other highs in this business, but as part of nature's balance there are also some low's, low performance activities.

The low performance activities that I am talking about is doing the stuff we don't like to do, when I am not speaking, or when you are not doing what your passion is in your business.

Things we do not get paid for directly. Things like marketing and sales, networking, research, administration, data base management, program development or simply writing articles.

If you don't like doing any of these things, or don't hire someone to do it for you, you can remain in low performance, financially and spiritually.

Using your time wisely leads to peak performance. If you are not speaking, or doing what you most love to do in your business, what are you doing to grow your business into the future?

Have you taken the time to produce a business plan? What are your short term and long term objectives? What is your action plan? What are you doing about it? What are your daily disciplines to peak performance?

The more you do, the more positive the mind remains and the closer you get to peak performance. Everything comes in direct proportion to the effort excerpted. Do nothing and you worry and get depressed which leads to low performance. The more you do, the more you reach peak performance and gain financially and spiritually.

Like any business we also have our ups and downs. There are times of the year when business is up and other times when it is down. For most speakers December 15 to January 15 and for a good part of the summer months, business is down.

It is between these periods that business can be booming. When business is booming we are on a high - we can be at peak performance.

When it is down, we don't have to be at low performance. It is when business is down, that we can produce peak performance gold, if we want to bad enough.

It is during these down times that we can rest, plan, write and do other activities. This is the time to be planting peak performance gold seeds, to harvest financially and spiritually during peak performance activity times.

It is during down times that you should be doing the things you don't always enjoy doing. In my case I write.

Writing articles, booklets and/or books. Why? There are a couple of reasons. First the obvious. As an author, you gain credibility. With credibility comes respect and media attention. Media attention can help you build your speaking business and allows you to increase your peak performance and fees, if you are good. Of course there is also back of room sales revenue. This is the financial peak performance reason why speakers write.

The second reason I write during down times is for spiritual reasons. Writing reinforces the message within me and keeps the mind busy and focused. It is this focus of keeping the mind on desired outcomes, resulting in peak performance, and prevents down time negativity from entering.

Lack of focus and an idle mind invites negativity - low peak performance. Avoid low performance by keeping focused and busy - doing what you have to do, even when you don't want to do it - that is the definition of discipline.

The Bottom Line: As a speaker, entrepreneur or employee, you must know your vision and walk your talk, even during down times, to maintain peak performance.