Executive performance: harnessing the power of biometrics
Monash Corporate Education
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In the high-stakes executive world, sustained success isn’t just about working harder; it’s also about maintaining balance and paying attention to your body and brain. While most leaders are used to tracking metrics in business, they often overlook the need to track both objective and subjective data when it comes to their personal wellbeing and performance.
Understanding and integrating both types of data is essential for lasting success in maintaining your health, energy and high performance. It’s not just about numbers on a wearable device – though these are valuable – but also tuning in to the signals your body sends every day.
The importance of subjective data: listening to your body’s signals
Most high-performing professionals operate on ‘autopilot’, relying on ingrained habits – both helpful and unhelpful. With so many responsibilities, learning to tune in to what your body and brain are telling you can feel like another task. However, this awareness is critical to avoid burnout and maximise long-term performance.
Subjective data includes how you feel: your energy levels, appetite, mood and how well you’re functioning both physically and mentally. It’s the ‘dialogue’ between your body and brain that, when understood, can prevent the breakdowns that typically signal burnout.
Here are some key subjective metrics to track:
Energy: Are you feeling sustained energy throughout the day or are you crashing in the afternoon? Energy trends can give clues about underlying issues in your diet, sleep or stress management.
Appetite: Are you experiencing intense cravings or overeating? Both of these can indicate imbalances in nutrition or energy expenditure. Eating a high-protein breakfast has been shown to help stabilise hunger throughout the day and improve concentration.
Performance: This includes both your physical performance (how you feel during exercise) and cognitive function (your ability to focus, problem-solve and undertake ‘deep work’). Poor performance is often a red flag signalling the need for recovery or lifestyle adjustments.
By paying attention to these subjective signals before they become overwhelming, you can adjust your behaviour and improve performance. For example, a wind-down routine can improve sleep quality, and working in sync with your ultradian rhythms – alternating periods of work and rest – can keep your energy and productivity steady throughout the day.
The power of objective data: leveraging ‘wearables’ and technology
Objective data is where modern technology shines, allowing you to track specific health metrics that can’t be observed through intuition alone. Wearable devices can provide detailed biometric information, such as:
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Resting heart rate (RHR): This is an excellent indicator of cardiovascular health and recovery.
Heart rate variability (HRV): Higher HRV indicates that your body is in a good state of recovery and ready for action, while low HRV can signal periods of prolonged stress or overtraining.
Sleep stages: Wearables can track how much time you spend in REM and deep sleep – both crucial for recovery, memory consolidation and overall health.
The magic happens when you combine objective data with your subjective experience. For instance, if you notice that you’re feeling more fatigued than usual, you can cross-check with your device to see if your HRV is lower or if you’ve been getting less deep sleep. This combination of data points helps you fine-tune your approach to recovery and performance.
Practical suggestions for high-performing executives
Integrating both subjective and objective data into your routine doesn’t have to be complicated. Here are a few practical ways to start:
Track daily energy levels: Use a simple rating scale (1-10) at the beginning and end of each day to monitor how your energy fluctuates.
Track food intake and appetite cues: Pay attention to how different meals impact your cravings and hunger throughout the day, and consider integrating more protein into your breakfast to stabilise blood sugar levels. Pulsing your protein intake at specific times to meet your requirements rigorously, and even surpass them slightly, can also be important.
Track sleep and recovery: Invest in a device to monitor sleep quality and recovery metrics like resting heart rate, HRV and sleep stages, and then adjust your habits (like sleep routines or sleep supplement use) accordingly.
Blending subjective and objective data provides a more holistic view of your wellbeing and performance. Most executives aren’t using wearable devices yet, and even fewer are tracking subjective metrics consistently. This presents an enormous opportunity to improve not just performance at work but your overall quality of life.
Ultimately, tuning into your body’s cues while leveraging data-driven insights is key to unlocking sustainable, long-term high performance. By prioritising both objective and subjective data, you’ll be better equipped to manage stress, avoid burnout, and maintain a healthy work-life balance – while still meeting deadlines and leading your team or organisation with energy, stamina and confidence.
Jessica Spendlove is a leading performance dietitian, executive performance coach, speaker and an Associate to Monash Corporate Education . Together, they have developed a one-hour short program, available in-person or online, focussed on how you can use science-backed strategies with real-world application to achieve sustainable high performance in your work and life. For more information, please contact mbus-corporate-ed@monash.edu
Executive Performance Coach | Speaker | Consultant | Advisor | Award-Winning Performance Dietitian | Podcast Host ‘Stay at the Top’
1moI see this as a huge opportunity to make gains for executives and leaders when it comes to performing in work and life, and optimising their wellbeing.