“The greater danger for most of us lies not in setting our aim too high and falling short, but in setting our aim too low, and achieving our mark.” -Michelangelo
Perhaps the reason you’re not going all out, not giving it everything you have, is that you’re worried, “What happens if my best isn’t good enough?”
Far easier and safer to think to yourself, “Well, if I really wanted to, I would have tried harder. But I didn’t really want to.” That gives you an out.
But here’s the thing…that out, will always eat at you. At some point, that safe choice will turn into regret. And it will be a better pill to swallow.
Far better to know you tried your best at something, that you want after it with all your heart. And if it isn’t good enough, then so be it. You tried. You learned. You now know. No regrets.
On the other hand, what happens if your best IS good enough. What if it’s far better than you ever could have imagined?
You won’t know until you try,
Lakers coach and former NBA/Duke basketball player JJ Redick, once told a story about Coach K giving him some tough love…Duke lost to UConn in the Final Four and in an exit meeting Coach K told him that he didn’t work hard enough. He told Redick, “We didn’t win a national championship because you weren’t worthy of being a champion.’
While it stung in the moment, Redick realized that it was true. That he wasn’t working hard enough. That he was holding back because he was afraid his best wasn’t good enough. He was actually on the verge of quitting basketball. After that meeting with Coach K, Redick decided:
“No coach could ever say that about me again.”
That summer, he redefined his habits, his mindset, and his work ethic.
The result?
Over the next two seasons, Redick became the best player in college basketball, won National Player of the Year, and set Duke’s all-time scoring record.
P.S. – This scene.
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