| I’m sure we’ve all heard this statement countless times, especially from our parents. We may think we know the importance of doing our best, but do we really? How about when you are performing a so-called menial task; do you do your best then? How about when you’re sick or tired or no one will even know who did the job you are doing? If you truly know the importance of doing your best, you do it, not for the sake of the task you are doing, but for who you are becoming by adhering to the highest of standards.
The bottom line is YOU will know. Would you do it differently if your name were in flashing lights indicating it was your work? I believe that’s how we should approach every job, whether anyone will know we did it or not. One time my son told me he had finished a task I had ask him to do when it was obvious he hadn’t touched it. Instead of becoming angry or punishing him, I simply asked, “Son, do you want your name associated with that job? You see, every job you do represents who you are. It says something about you. What does this job say about you?” He did the job again and did a much better job the second time. Famed basketball coach John Wooden said, “If you don’t have time to do it right, when will you have the time to do it over?” |
| Life flies by at such a hectic pace that we seldom get a chance to go back and “spruce up” what we should have done with excellence the first time around. Spencer W. Kimball said, “Do it. Do it right. Do it right now.” What a great maxim for life! We should be people of action, exact action, and timely action. Excellence should be our trademark.
“Excellence is doing ordinary things extraordinarily well.” (John W. Gardner) We don’t necessarily have to do great and grand things to make a great difference in this world. We just need to cultivate a habit of performing with excellence even the smallest of tasks. When we do, we will be met with success beyond what we can imagine. |
| In his book, “Blessed and Unstoppable,” Billy Alsbrooks said, “Excellence is transportation. She’s an elevator that can take you from the absolute bottom to the highest level imaginable. Wealth and prosperity have always had a love affair with her. She is magnetic, beautifully unmistakable, and universally recognized by everyone. There’s no substitute or equivalent to her. When she enters the room, everyone knows it.” Wow! Where do you want to go in life? What do you want to achieve? By remembering to perform even the smallest of tasks with excellence, you will be able to go wherever you want to go in life because doing and being your best attracts the best. |
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. said, “If a man is called to be a street sweeper, he should sweep streets even as a Michelangelo pained, or Beethoven composed music or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say, ‘Here lived a great street sweeper who did his job well.’”
What is your calling in life? Are you performing its tasks with excellence, or do you allow mediocrity to slip in at times? If you are not where you want to be in life, I encourage you to take a hard look at your actions. Perhaps you’ve allowed yourself to settle for less than you deserve or are capable of. Don’t settle for less than living your purpose, and key to that is striving for excellence. EVERY. SINGLE. DAY. Even if you are not where you would like to be now, by doing everything you do with excellence, you will cause doors to open that are not open to those who settle for mediocrity.
“If one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours.” Henry David Thoreau
Always do your best, and the best things in life will come to you. Make it an excellent week!
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