Distinguishing traits of elite performers: here is what separates the world's best from their second-place contenders.

• Author: Wanetick, David
• Position: PERFORMANCE EVALUATION

AS IN ANY PURSUIT, the differentiating factors separating the most highly compensated business leaders from the mediocre performers are marginal in nature. An executive who earns an annual $10 million compensation package is not 100 times more intelligent--and certainly cannot work 100 times more assiduously--than an executive who earns $100,000 a year.

In my newly released book, The Power of Incremental Advantage, I documented dozens of examples of how incremental advantages produce dramatically disproportionate results. In fact, one bullet, one vote, one second, one word, and one inch have shaped history and changed the world. To wit:

* In the summer of 1930--over two years before his seizure of power in Germany--a car in which Hitler was riding in the right front passenger seat collided with a heavy trailer truck. The truck braked just in time to avoid running over Hitler's car and crushing him. Because of the degree to which Hitler's psychopathology determined Nazi policy and success, World War II and the resulting reshaping of Europe would probably have been quite different if the truck driver had braked one second later.

* Congress reauthorized pre-World War II military conscription by a single vote. Without the 12 million American men and women in uniform, it is difficult to see how the Allied Powers could have prevailed over the Axis forces.

* In the 2000 Presidential Election, President Bush's margin of victory over Al Gore was 154 votes in Florida, which enabled the former to edge out the latter with four electoral votes. In the waning months of 2000, the fate of the nation, if not the world, literally hung on a few dangling chads.

* If the bullet that struck Ronald Reagan on March 30, 1981, was just one inch closer to his heart, the Berlin Wall might not have fallen and the Soviet Empire may not have collapsed.

So too, in the business world, seemingly small differences have a major impact on commercial success (see box).

For the past 15 years, we have interviewed hundreds of highly successful executives representing industries ranging from advertising to water utilities. We have conducted extensive surveys of people who have reached the zenith of success in a wide range of pursuits. The mission of this research has been to determine the common traits that separate the world's best performers from the second-place contenders.

Our research indicates that second-place contenders share many of the common denominators with the world's most successful people. The elite professionals in most endeavors focus on their key area of expertise, delegate their responsibilities, and are consummate managers of their time. The differentiating factors that determine the rank of the top participants are more a matter of degree and the dedication to executing the principles outlined below. Aristotle said, "We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act but a habit." More recently, Charles R. Walgreen concurred when he said, "Success is doing a thousand little things the right way--doing many of them over and over again." The process of building a successful career is step by step, and is similar to compounding interest. In a career, success must be measured by the positive actions taken, not the immediate results. Even in the world of innovation, success is less about being an inventor with an occasional flash of creativity and more about being consistently innovative in your decisionmaking.

The following are among the denominators common to many of the world's most successful people. Executives seeking to elevate their performance should embrace the following conclusions.

1. Focus on what you do best

   You should continue improving and defining your strengths so that you can become the best in the world at your chosen area of expertise. Trying to strengthen your weaknesses will require huge resources and will not be sufficient to dislodge your entrenched...