Raise Your Standards

Stop saying, “I did my best.” Your best isn’t the standard. The standard is the standard, and if we are being honest, I don’t think you did your best.

Too often, we say we did our best, but in reality, if you were to watch the tape of your effort or the way you talked to yourself while you were working, it wouldn’t have been your absolute best.

Tim Corbin, the legendary Vanderbilt baseball coach, said it best: “Rules are for people who can't follow directions. Standards are for people who aspire to do special things.”

Rules are for people who need direction. Standards are for people who want to do something special. Rules tell you what’s acceptable. Standards tell you what’s expected when excellence is the goal.

Most people live by rules. High performers and the best teams live by standards.

A standard, by definition, is “what good looks like.” But the best leaders define what “great” looks like and then refuse to settle for anything less.

If you want to stand out, you can’t just follow the rules. You have to raise your standard. Then you have to meet it. Again and again because excellence isn’t an accident, it’s a standard.

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