That Pesky Standard

As a young martial arts student, I always had a love-hate relationship with rank advancement testing. The idea of standing before a panel of highly-ranked black belts who would be grading my performance of technique, kata, and real-life application of what I was learning created a sense of both excitement and anxiety.

I was being held to a standard.

Thoughts ran through my head. Did I practice enough? Is my cardio good? Can I remember how to execute the movements in the proper order and not mess up? Will I really be able to break those boards? Can I remember all my Japanese terms? What happens if I mess up or forget? What if they're not impressed? What if I fail?

I was being held to a standard.

A standard is a benchmark for measuring results. It's a grading mechanism for evaluating one thing as compared to another. It's a tool for accountability. The Oxford dictionary defines a standard as (1) a level of quality or attainment; (2) an idea or thing used as a measure, norm, or model in comparative evaluations; or (3) used or accepted as normal or average.

Without a standard, a benchmark, it is impossible to determine whether something is below average, average, above average, or excellent. Standards give us something to measure against, a minimum level of quality or proficiency to achieve in order to be considered typical, usual, or within the norm.

A standard is also used in manufacturing to determine whether or not a product meets the minimum guidelines for quality and safety. One of the root causes of the Titanic sinking was the subpar rivets that held the steel plates together. As the standards were not followed in the manufacturing process, the rivets were too brittle and snapped when the ship struck an iceberg in the cold Atlantic ocean.

Leaders understand the importance of standards, as they provide a minimum guideline for performance and success. Without standards, leaders have no means to measure results or to evaluate success (or the lack thereof) for themselves and the Team they are leading. It's how you measure productivity, quality, performance, quantity, outcomes, and results.

You can't know if you're winning or losing without standards.

Standards allow us to measure to a MINIMUM level of proficiency, quality, or outcome. It provides a means of comparison (a benchmark) between the output of an individual or an organization and its peers. It allows us to evaluate our available choices in personnel or resources to determine between good, better, and best.

Standards allow us to determine a minimum level of proficiency in education or vocational skills training, allowing graduates to compete at a higher level in life. If graduates enter the workplace lacking in education and skills, they enter with a strategic disadvantage over their peers and will likely struggle to experience a high level of success in life.

Rewarding mediocrity, or simply showing up, doesn't promote the importance of achieving or exceeding the standard. That's why I'm not a personal fan of participation medals. You're not a winner in life just because you show up. You're a winner in life because you exceed expectations, the standard, and you outperform the competition.

Lowering the standard doesn't make the situation better, it makes it worse. Leaders understand a standard is the MINIMUM level of achievement. Most of the time, a standard is considered the AVERAGE, good-enough to be OK. But good enough is the enemy of great, and real success never comes from just being good enough.

If you lower the benchmark, the measuring stick used to evaluate proficiency, quality, or success, how does that make things better? Improve the outcome? Good leaders understand that good enough isn't good enough and strive to encourage and inspire their Team to be BETTER than the standard.

Great leaders, on the other hand, not only want to BEAT the standard in terms of achievement, they want to raise the bar for everyone by SETTING A HIGHER STANDARD by which people (or things) are measured. They want to create a BETTER OUTCOME for everyone by seeking continual improvement.

This is the pursuit of Black Belt Excellence and a hallmark of those who are living their lives as Black Belt Leaders in Life.

The standards we set for ourselves, and for others, will determine the level of success (or lack thereof) we will experience in life. Don't settle for mediocre, average, or good enough. Far too many people settle for what life offers by setting their standards, their benchmarks for success, too low. Don't lower the standard...raise it!

You CAN become a better version of yourself every single day. And if you do that day after day, week after week, month after month, and year after year, you continually elevate the standard of excellence for your own life - and you achieve a level of success that most people will not.

YOU control your destiny. YOU choose the life you will make for yourself. YOU are responsible for choosing the standards that will govern your life and whether or not you'll sell yourself short in achieving all you're capable of becoming and accomplishing.

The standards you establish, embrace, and choose to exceed will determine the quality of life you will enjoy. Standards matter. High standards matter even more. Standards of excellence are required to live an excellent life.

Set a standard of excellence for yourself, and then strive to exceed it. And when you do, raise that standard even higher, and exceed that. Keep doing that enough times, and you'll experience a level of success you've never imagined.

Those pesky standards, they matter.

Choose them well!

Success awaits.

2X martial arts Hall of Fame inductee, John Terry (The Black Belt Leader) is passionate about helping others become Black Belt Leaders in Life. He is a motivational speaker, leadership, sales & communication coach, and trainer.  For more information, to purchase John's books or training content, or to schedule John to speak to your organization or to schedule training or coaching, visit www.beablackbeltleader.com.  

If you are a faith-based organization, learn more about John's international outreach to churches, para-church organizations, or faith-based volunteer groups by visiting www.DunamisFactor.com.