“Good Enough” Isn’t Good Enough
There’s a societal epidemic that has become increasingly prevalent: complacent mediocrity. It’s the thing that drives us to take a look at our task, project, or process and say “good enough” and stop.
The problem with it is that it sets the bar so low that there is never a challenge or a motivation to do better. Think about this for a second. If expectations are low enough that they are easily reached and easily satisfied, what incentive is there to improve upon them? The answer is ‘none at all’, because the unmotivated, complacent fulfillment of low standards breeds further complacency, carelessness, and laziness.
One of the greatest movements found in service organizations that have adopted the ITIL framework is the idea of constant improvement. That is, regularly and consistently asking the question “what can we do better?”. These organizations, as a general rule, have an upward trend over time in productivity, effectiveness, and most noticeably, excellence. Additionally, a short study of such organizations reveals a collaborative approach to these constant improvement initiatives. Processes get built around methodologies such as the RACI model (Responsible/Accountable/Consulted/Informed), or Deming’s PDCA cycle (Plan/Do/Check/Act).
Naturally, we look for shortcuts and cheats; quicker ways to achieve a result, even if it means sacrificing quality and/or quantity. We find it, we say “good enough”, and stay in that destructive cycle. Being excellent, however, demands hard work, focus, thought, resources, energy, and so on. If we want to produce the best, we have to expect better of ourselves. We have to raise the bar and reach it, then raise it again and reach it again, and so on.
Constant improvement and consistent review are necessary, but only when we grasp the idea that “good enough” simply isn’t good enough.
