WHAT IS EXCELLENCE?

WHAT IS EXCELLENCE?

Lots of people I know are high-achievers, go-getters, motivated individuals who want to be the best at what they have chosen to do in life. I like surrounding myself by people like this, they excite me and motivate me in turn, making me feel like I can achieve anything that I want to if I just try hard enough (still working on flying). However, it is these very same people who are the harshest self-critics and will berate themselves for what they view as minor misdemeanors. They are often the people who worry the most, work the hardest and unconsciously compare themselves to other people as a measure of how well they are doing. Well first of all I say to these people that you are all excellent because you are all trying, and just endeavoring in the act of striving you are bettering yourself.  But my heartfelt words of encouragement may not be enough to help these people realize that they are the pinnacle, they are the people that change lives, they are the people that do instead of watch, act instead of think, feel without reserve. So, I want to set about defining what is excellence in an aim to prove that excellence is something everyone can achieve.

The English dictionary defines excellence as:

noun

1  The state or quality of excelling or being exceptionally good; extreme merit; superiority

I find this definition annoying and also I would argue that in actual fact it is wrong. Why would I be so blatant as to think I know better than the English dictionary? For these two reasons below.

The first reason being that this definition offers absolutely no context. People rarely exist in a vacuum so surely the state of excelling requires background, situation, context to that persons’ life. 

Take for one example the competitive athlete who has every hour of every day to train or prepare good quality nutritious food. They have ultimate access to trainers and coaches, nutritionists and advisors, maybe even to baby-sitters and child-minders. All they need to do is focus on their goals, train twice and day and eat right. Is this person excellent or are they just good by circumstance? I would contend that any average person who follows that routine would be competition ready in just a few months. 

Maybe I am just being harsh or maybe I am jealous because I would like to be able to have that level of selfishness without thought or heed of anyone else. Surely more impressive is the part-time mum, full-time office worker who fits in twice a day training around long working hours and still makes time for bath playtime and to read her children a bedtime story. That to me says she is succeeding at all other aspects of her life WHILST excelling at fitness.

Not too sure about my example? A bit too specific for those of you who don’t share a passion for training? Another example is the child of wealthy parents who gets a first class degree. Yes hard-work was put in (unless the degree was bought!) but did this student ever have to spend half their time studying and half in paid employment, did they ever have to worry about their next meal or how they would afford the new text book. Did they ever spend 25% of their time cycling to lectures because they couldn’t afford a car. They earned their degree but in the optimal of conditions. Not to sound resentful again but could they have done the same whilst faced with biopsychosocial adversity? 

Last example: the 25-year-old business director who inherited his father’s successful business on leaving college. Would he have been in the same position had he not been heir to an already established business or would he have had to work his way up like other employees? What I am trying to question is whether these people are examples of excellence because of their situation not in spite of it. 

How about the builder that buys an old house to fix up; yes, an impressive task I admit. Nonetheless does this compare to the doctor who works 56 hours a week and buys his own place and does it up all himself (whilst maintaining a relationship and a social life!).  The business owner who writes best-selling books in his spare-time. The couple who race endurance races around looking after their new baby. The uneducated child-minder who takes night courses to then set up her own booming business. 

These people scream excellence to me. They are not only living their everyday lives but are thriving at it yet still manage to achieve excellence in something they have chosen, whatever that may be. If these individuals have reached excellence in one part of their life at the detriment to all else is that really excellence? I argue that truly inspirational people are not those who have a perfect set of circumstances and reach brilliance but those who achieve it in spite of imperfect environments, against odds and making their own route that works for them.

Reason number two for disagreeing with this definition is the mention of the word superiority. This words necessitates connotations of negativity; by my definition people who excel do not exude superiority, they don’t have to show off what they can or can’t do and they don’t need the world to think they are perfect in an effort to strive for external validity. A brilliant, inspirational person is one who seeks excellence not to boast and parade on display but for themselves. They don’t make other people feel inferior by their lesser ability but aspire to help others achieve their own state of excellence. They are quiet and happy in their abilities and they know they will get their moment to shine.

So my friends this is the reason that I say you are all excellence embodied. For you are all an exception to your environment rather than a product of it. You all strive, work hard, keep pushing even when faced with set-backs. You all judge yourselves too harshly so give yourselves a smile J