Progress over Perfection: The Key to Long-Term Success in Government Contracting

One of my greatest strengths has been my ability to keep going. It doesn't sound like a superpower, until you realize how many people give up after just a little effort. And don't get me wrong, I've wanted to quit thousands of times. But I didn't. I kept going. While there are a lot of reasons people list for giving up, the single greatest reason is that life and business can be hard. And hard takes a toll on you mentally, physically, and emotionally.

When things get hard, it's easy for us to beat ourselves up. The inner monologue in our primitive brains goes right to how it's all our fault. And then our brain starts to defend our feelings and emotions by trying to talk ourselves into quitting. WHY does our brain do this? Because our brain is wired to do two things. 1. Keep us alive and 2. Keep us happy. It's directive #2 that kicks our butt because when we are uncomfortable, our brain wants us to stop doing the thing that is making us uncomfortable. Our brain would prefer we do nothing than something that causes pain. This is why we have to reprogram our brain to do one of two things. If you can recognize pain as an opportunity and find joy in the hard work, you can move mountains. But not everyone can do that. So this isn't going to be the focus of this article. Instead, I think most people need to focus on the second thing you can do and that is to focus on progress over perfection. Once you realize that ANY progress in the right direction is a good thing, your brain will start to celebrate progress.

Your success will be defined by your ability to keep going when you don't see massive results.

Here's a few things you can focus on to create success.

1. Consistency Beats Perfection – Success in government contracting isn’t about one perfect proposal or a single big win; it’s about consistently showing up, learning, and improving. Consistency means showing up daily and taking action. If you want six pack abs, you have to show up to the gym almost every single day. Not once a month. Perfectionism can paralyze progress; focus on consistently showing up instead.
2. Small Wins Lead to Big Results – Just like fitness, small daily efforts—networking, refining your proposals, and building relationships—compound over time. Set goals. Work on hitting them. Once you are consistently hitting your goals, increase them.
3. Results Take Time – You may not see immediate ROI from your BD efforts, but consistent action will position you for future success. Small contracts often take days or weeks to land. Bigger contracts can take months or even years. Your success will be defined by your ability to keep going when you don't see massive results.
4. Data Over Emotion – Track your progress with real metrics (submissions, responses, phone calls) instead of focusing on short-term emotions of rejection. You can't run your business by emotions. You need real data (facts).
5. Learn from Every Attempt – Each proposal you submit, each meeting you take, and each bid you lose is an opportunity to refine and improve. Learn one thing from everything you do. But don't dwell on your mistakes. Learn and move on.
6. Your Reputation is Built Over Time – Prime contractors and agencies want to see reliability and persistence before awarding contracts. It doesn't matter how amazing you are, people need to see you stick around and consistently follow through on your word.
7. Stay in the Game Longer Than Others – Many give up too soon; those who keep pushing forward will outlast the competition. Most people fail within three years of starting their business. They fail for a lot of reasons. None of those reasons matter. What matters is your ability to outlast the competition.
8. Long-Term Strategy Wins Over Short-Term Thinking – Winning contracts requires a multi-year approach—relationships, experience, and past performance take time to build. But you have to consider the future and diligently plan it and then execute it!
9. Success is Inevitable if You Keep Moving – The only way to fail is to stop. Keep bidding, keep networking, and keep improving. The results will come.

About the Author

Michael LeJeune is well-respected in the GovCon community for his candid take on the best ways to cut through the B.S. to grow government contracting businesses. His company RSM Federal has helped their clients win over $14 Billion in government contracts and they have trained more than 24,000 contractors. You could be their next success story!

His latest bestselling book titled, "I'm New to Government Contracting. Where Should I Start?" is a must read for anyone in the market. You can grab it here: https://amzn.to/4hHLPeE

Join Michael's Inner Circle community. We cut through the B.S. and give you exactly what you need to level up as a government contractor: https://federal-access.com/linkedin/

You can listen to his podcast, "Game Changers for Government Contractors" on any podcast app (Most popular: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/game-changers-for-government-contractors/id1124575635)

You can book a call with Michael here: https://calendly.com/michaellejeune/govconstrategysession