When Is Good Good Enough? When Is Excellent Not Enough?

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Brink Thinking® Educational SlideShare Series

When is good good enough?

When is excellent not enough?

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In pursuit of excellence, we sometimes fall short. Not intentionally mind you,

but it happens. Keep in mind that excellence can mean many different things to

each of us. Excellence is subjective, it comes back to our individual standards.

When is good good enough? When is excellent not enough?

Isn't the idea to set the expectation, reach for it and accomplish the goal?

Nothing less and nothing more! Which is exactly where the problem lies. Let

me explain...

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1Christa was a project manager at a National Insurance Benefits company. She managed nine people and was responsible for securing new business and ultimately the goals within the department. An opportunity presented itself to pitch a piece of business that was worth 20% of their annual budget - to say the least, it was an extraordinary opportunity. The potential new client delivered an RFP to the firm with a deadline of thirty days. The team got busy quickly. There were five potential deliverables to the project and each bidder was asked to define an action plan to accomplish three of the five. Christa met with the team continuously throughout the month in order to deliver the best proposal they could for the selected three deliverables. Presentation day came and the team nailed all three in a big way. The potential client seemed truly pleased, Christa was certain they had the deal...


Case Study

...One week later they received the response that they didn't want nor expect. It claimed their work was excellent, but fell just short of what two of the other competing companies had delivered. Christa asked "I thought the work was excellent, what more could we have done to make these three deliverables shine?" The answer came back: "Your team could have included the other deliverables." That was the deciding factor as the competition delivered on all five.

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2Nine years in the same job. Marvin has done it all, or so he thought. He did everything that was asked of him, never complained and was always on time. Yet when the promotion became available, he wasn't even on the ballot. He knew he could do the job if he was given a fair shake. Two of the people that were being considered for the promotion had been there less than half the time as Marvin. None of it made sense, he knew he had done everything that was asked of him. He never questioned anything that didn't need to be questioned. He wasn't a troublemaker. He never created more work than was necessary. He never worked overtime, but his work was always done timely, so there was never a reason to. Hurt and confused, Marvin started looking for other work...


Case Study

... When word leaked out, his boss asked to see him. Marvin discovered the hard way that being steady and complacent - does not a leader make. His boss explained to him that he never went above and beyond, so the company took this as a sign of weakness. But Marvin had everything running smoothy, there was never a reason to reinvent programs and assignments!

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3Consider the powerhouse brands of Sears, J.C. Penney and RadioShack. These well known brands are preparing to close hundreds of stores by year end. At one time each of them owned their respective space. When is the last time you've walked through any one of these retailers? They look like brands from the 1970's and 80's. Outdated by most standards, yet practical - they still have many of the products that made them famous. What happened then? Nothing was broken, so really nothing to fix! Many of the executives running these companies lived and died by the creed: "If It Ain't Broke, Don't Fix It." Their stores began to look tired. Sears and J.C. Penney spent millions on new carpet, colors and slogans….


Case Study

...but still not enough to move the meter and reverse their steady decline into that group of irrelevant retailers that are void of any sizzle! These big brands were playing to the rules of most industry experts who say; create your brand space (the look and feel specifically) and commit to that look over the life of the brand. For many years this worked well. But times have changed. New technology and a fresh idea will change the paradigm in an instant.

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Christa and Marvin were both guilty of not doing any more than they had to. They both did their jobs very well, they just never went beyond the expected. Could they have achieved greatness or accomplished more in their respective industries? We'll never know because they never had a reason to try. They lived their careers by the status-quo creed… "If It Ain't Broke, Don't Fix It." In fact so did the retailers in case study 3. These brands rested on their laurels. They waited until they had to change, until they were forced to change, and it was too late! The competitors were already eating their lunch and dinner for that matter. They then became reactive, instead of proactive. When you're trying to catch up and you're constantly coming from behind, your brand continues to loose steam and sinks lower and lower.


You remember the phrase "the harder I work, the luckier I get?” It should have been "the more absurd I think, the luckier I get." There is a reason why some people achieve so much, and yet others fail to edge their agenda beyond average. It's not determination or even perseverance that propels them forward. It's knowing that the unimaginable is imaginable. That boundaries are meant to be broken, and questions are meant to be asked.

I n S u m m a r y

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We're scared of the unknown

We're not sure of the execution

We think we need to fit into society, rather than STAND OUT


Why do we limit ourselves when we could achieve so much more?

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Do you often convince yourself ?

Everyone else who tried has failed, I don't have a chance

I have this crazy idea, but it's just a dream. It will never happen

There are so many reasons why this won't work

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1. When is taking a risk an option worth considering?

2. When does the absurd become a valid consideration?

3. How do you make the leap into the unknown?

Ask yourself three questions!

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Shift Your Mindset Malcolm has taught this process to executives and companies from around the globe. Email Malcolm directly at [email protected].

Brink Thinking® is an approach to problem-solving and strategy building. It is rooted in courage and willingness to take risks: Brink Thinkers bring ideas to success by pushing through the boundaries.

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1. Don’t settle for a good idea, even when those around you do

2. Remember that your boundaries are self-imposed

3. Begin to think of alternatives to break through the clutter

4. Question everything, the obvious and the not so obvious

5. Make your two new favorite words: What if?

6. Don’t panic when the idea seems absurd

7. If everyone else if doing it, then don’t

8. Take the idea all the way to the Brink

9. Knowing you’re at the Brink – is instinctive and genius


The true potential of a Brink Thinker is inside each of us!

If It Ain't Broke, BREAK IT

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Brink Thinking is centered around making the irrational rational. Many of the best inventions and ideas that have impacted society today seemed irrational until a Brink Thinker thought beyond the absurd. Imagination

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Society benefits when imagination and absurdity collide.


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When Is Good Good Enough? When Is Excellent Not Enough?

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