How do you want to measure your abilities? By being acknowledged for growing the world’s heaviest lemon maybe?

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October 18, 2011

How do you want to measure your abilities? By being acknowledged for growing the world’s heaviest lemon maybe?

I was having a look through my son’s Guinness World Book of Records book and still find myself astonished by what people will do to get into this hefty book of sometimes astonishing and quite frankly weird records. I can understand people wanting acknowledgement for holding the record at being the fastest runner over 100metres, or being the fastest person to swim the channel. But frankly there are a huge number of records listed that I just can’t imagine anyone actually sat there and thought up the idea of in the first place. Here’s but a mere taster, of what some people will do to make their mark:

• 2510 people in Swansea, dressed up as smurfs in white and blue, complete with blue faces and white hats to break the record for the most people dressed as smurfs in one place
• The tightest circumference of a 30 centimeter (12-inch) aluminum frying pan, rolled with bare hands in 30 seconds is 17.46 centimeters set in Myrtle Beach, S.C., on July 30, 2007.
• Jean-François Vernetti of Switzerland collected 8,888 different ‘Do Not Disturb’ hotel signs from 189 countries across the world since 1985
• The longest distance pulled by a horse while on full-body burn was 472.8 meter (1,551 feet, 2 inches) by Halapi Roland in Kisoroszi, Hungary, Nov. 12, 2008.

I've never felt the need to try out any of the above, but this book of records fascinates me. Over 100 million copies, printed in 40 languages have been sold. According to Guinness, tens of thousands of people who want to set a record apply each year, and 80% of those applications get rejected. So what drives people to want to get their name in this famous book of achievements?

Some people, may view attempting to set a world record as a way to measure themselves. For these people, this will be about understanding where they are positioned in the world, and how they fit in the grand scheme of things. I can however think of easier ways to gain a measured view of myself that doesn’t involve crushing 80 eggs with my head in a minute.

360 degree feedback is a widely used tool in business to measure and define just how well individuals are performing. This type of review gives an all round insight, into a persons strengths and weaknesses as seen by those around them, which enables them to understand their position within the organisation they work for.

So, if you’d like to gain a measured view on how you perform, without having to hurdle 100metres wearing swimming fins on your feet, consider taking part in a 360 degree feedback review.