So How Good Do You Want To Be?

Good.
Quite Good.
Very Good.
The best in our field.
Or the best in the world?

“Talent helps but it won’t take you as far as ambition. Everybody wants to be good, but few are prepared to make the sacrifices to be great. You will become whoever you want to be.”
-Paul Arden

“Good is the enemy of great. And that is one of the key reasons why we have so little that becomes great. We don’t have great schools, principally because we have good schools. We don’t have great government, principally because we have good government. Few people attain great lives, in large part because it is just so easy to settle for a good life.”
Greatness is not a function of circumstance. Greatness, it turns out, is largely a matter of conscious choice and discipline.
-Jim Collins

Good is seductive. For many of us, it’s not too difficult to be good. And good has a nice feeling attached to it. On the other hand, good performance won’t get you to the top of the promotion list and keep you off of the layoff list. Great performance will.

Think for a minute. What are the kinds of things that you can do that go above and beyond, and that demonstrate your commitment to your own success? Make a list. Then go about doing these things regularly.

Activity and persistence will make you an outstanding performer. And they are the key to putting the career advice to work. Activity – even 1% more than you currently do – and persistence – fighting through problems and setbacks – will yield positive results in the long term. But you have to commit to them.

If you practice longer, prepare more, make the extra call, rewrite your proposal, and rehearse your presentation, you will find yourself creating the life and career success you want and deserve. Keep at it. Don’t become idle. Don’t let your brilliance rust away.
-Excerpts from Bud Bilanich

“To accomplish great things, we must not only act, but also dream, not only plan, but also believe.”
-Anatole France

“Life is made up of little things. It is very rare that an occasion is offered for doing a great deal at once. True greatness consists in being great in little things.”
-Charles Simmons