Good Enough Is Good Enough
Last week I had a lightning strike moment where something really profound clicked for me. If you’re like me constantly trying to find ways to improve, It’s particularly important to have the right relationship with your personal development. This thought helped me get clarity on my own growth process.
Just because you could do better does not mean you didn’t do good enough.
Read that again.
The reality is, you can always do better. Performance is a spectrum but there is no ceiling to it. Even if you are the #1, most elite person in the world at something, you still could do better. You could have done it in less time, gotten a bigger result, optimized or automated a part of it… I’m yet to have encountered anyone who has done anything that could not have been done better.
So if the possibility of doing better is a constant, that can’t be the benchmark of success. It’s literally unattainable because at that point we’re talking about perfection, which does not exist. If your expectation is to be perfect and you aren’t satisfied with your results until you achieve perfection, you are going to be disappointed as you consistently fall short no matter what you do.
That means there has to be a level of performance that is enough to satisfy you. There has to be a level to attain that is significant and that you’re proud of. The word ‘enough’ is confusing because it has two connotations, one being that you’re settling for an amount that is just enough, and the other being that the amount is sufficient and feels complete. We want to pursue that second version of enough and sufficiency.
Just because you could do better does not mean you didn’t do good enough.
The fact that you’ve identified room for improvement does not represent that your performance wasn’t sufficient. The problem is we discredit our accomplishments because we fell short of this idea of “more”. You hit your sales goal but you ruminate on those few deals that didn’t close. You have a good workout but realize you could have done a few more reps. You spend time with a loved one but realize you weren’t as present as you could have been in every moment.
Again, you can always do better, and that’s a beautiful thing. But don’t let knowing that you could do better cloud how well you actually did. When you separate those two concepts from each other you’ll find that you feel more complete, content, and proud of yourself. You can observe your performance with more fair criteria and recognize the impact you’ve made. And what a life that is!
On your personal development journey, you need to be sure you have the right foundation in place. Discover the 7 Fundamentals To Self Improvement and instantly accelerate your growth! (Who knows what you might be overlooking and how it’s holding you back…)
