"Good Enough" good enough?

So, lately I've been thinking about a saying I heard Bill Parcells tell Tony Romo. He said, "Don't let 'good enough' be good enough." I heard it a couple years ago and since then, it has come to mind from time to time. Often people are content with where they are. I've seen teams do it, organizations do it, companies do it, and people do it. We fail to become what we're capable of becoming because we are content with where we are. We think we have improved enough to succeed and now we can reap what we have sowed. Unfortunately, this is not enough. Gordon Hinckley once said, "There is room for improvement in every life." I would like to take that further and say there is room for improvement in every aspect of every life. No matter where we are, or how far we've come, we can always improve. Do not be satisfied.

Other people believe they have achieved all there is to achieve. That, for whatever reason, they have maxed out their potential. We think we will never be able to achieve this or that. I'm as guilty as the next person. Do not sell yourself short. I echo the challenge of President Hinckley when he said, "I challenge everyone of you who can hear me to rise up to the divinity within you." Again, do not sell yourself short.

Finally, I would like to give two hints or pieces of advice for those who are trying to not let 'good enough' be good enough.

First, "shoot for the stars." There is a quote by C.S. Lewis that was probably said in a different context (a topic I hope to address in a later post) but that I feel applies here. He said, "aim at heaven and you will get earth thrown in. Aim at earth and you get neither." If we set our goals high we may or may not get there. But, we will get everything on the way there. Set our goals low and we may or may not get there. The difference is, if its low we haven't accomplished anything on the way.

Secondly, we just need to start moving. When we set our goals high we always run the risk of being so overwhelmed by the task that we never start moving towards the goal. I learned a great lesson while wrestling years ago in high school. Just get through the next minute (in a wrestling match or workout. One minute is a long time in those). If you can't get through the next minute get through the next 30 seconds. Can't do that? Get through the next 15 seconds and so on. Eventually you will get to a point where it's easy to do. Then you just keep on getting through the next 5 seconds. Soon enough, you'll make it through the match or to your goal. C.S. Lewis also said, "It may be hard for an egg to turn into a bird; it would be a jolly sigh harder for it to learn to fly while remaining an egg. We are like eggs at present. And you cannot go on indefinitely being just on ordinary, decent egg. We must be hatched or go bad." Like the egg, we need to start moving or we will go bad.

Set your goals high and far. Then just keep on focusing on that next step. Before you know it you'll be there. Then set your goals high and far and do it all over again. Don't be satisfied at where you're at.

The conquest is never over. The field is never quite ours.