What Is Performance, Anyway?

Maybe the reason that you can't get people to perform is because you don't really know what performance is or how to make it happen.  Both leadership and strategy require a clear understanding of what performance is so that goals will be aligned and effort will return value.  One engineer/author says that we should reach for "worthy" performance as the ideal that satisfies both the employer and the employee.  What is the exchange of value that optimizes human endeavor?  Is there only one?  What if there are actually 7 billion models for this exchange of value?  Does your head hurt yet?