Excellence is visual. It has a scent. You can always feel excellence.

Yet most people either assume they are excellent when they are not, or they avoid it by treating ordinary moments as disposable.

Here is how I know.

A few years ago, I was doing a keynote in Raleigh, North Carolina, in December. An old colleague constantly told me about this steakhouse in Raleigh called The Angus Barn, which I must try, so this was my chance.

From the moment I pulled up, I could tell the leaders there cared deeply about excellence. It was not just the Christmas décor or the steak. It was the staff. I told that whole story on stage the next day.

Last week, I was back in Raleigh coaching four high-performing leaders. Naturally, I wanted to experience excellence again. I arrived around 4:00 PM and waited nearly two hours to get a seat in the Turkey Lounge.

Sev, the bartender, was excellent from the moment I sat down. His timing. His questions. His wine pours. Everything was intentional. Being my curious self, I asked him how long he had been at The Angus Barn. His face lit up.

“Eleven years. I started as a busboy and worked my way up to the best job in the house.”

Then I asked, “What do you think they see in you that keeps getting you promoted?”

His answer is the part I want you to remember. “I never take a day, a shift, or a customer interaction for granted.”

It reminded me of this truth. People who choose excellence refuse to treat any moment as ordinary.

That is what excellence looks like in real life. Not perfection. Not flash. Just someone who refuses to treat a shift as ordinary.

It made me think about how often people take the opportunities right in front of them for granted or complain about them. Most people do not fail because they lack opportunity. They fail because they get casual with it. A language of complaining and indifference is incompatible with excellence.

I do not know what you have in front of you today. Maybe it is school. Maybe it is a work shift. Maybe it is a big sales call. Maybe it is simply picking your kids up from school.

This is your reminder. Never take it for granted. Whether you enjoy it or not, do it with excellence. Today is your chance to choose it, the same way Sev does every shift at The Angus Barn.

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