“Do the ordinary extraordinarily well.”
This quote reminds me of work, my personal life and even my golf game. I read a lot about golf, and I love the data we’re getting about what it takes to play better. I’ve learned that scoring better in golf isn’t about making more birdies; it’s about avoiding double bogies. It’s about making more pars. As they say, good golf is boring. Playing good golf means keeping it in play, getting it on the green in two, putting and taking the par. You avoid the big numbers. It’s easier said than done, but it’s boring—there’s nothing dramatic about it. You don’t need hero shots to be a better golfer.
A lot of this is true in the workplace, too. I listen to The Prof G Pod with Scott Galloway, one of my favorites. Recently, he gave advice to a young person moving from Indiana to California to start a new job. His two tips were simple. First, find out when people get to work and when they leave. Then, show up 15 to 30 minutes earlier and stay 15 to 30 minutes later—not to show off, but to work. That’s an extra hour a day, five hours a week. In a year, that adds up to 24 extra days of work. That’s five weeks of additional time to get things done and add value. The second piece of advice was to find out what problems your leaders have and help solve them. Volunteer to help with projects that take problems off their plate.
This advice is not extraordinary, and it doesn’t require 80-hour work weeks or a fancy degree. All you need to do is do the ordinary things extraordinarily well. Become known for keeping your commitments, meeting deadlines and being someone others can count on. Watch how the world will open up for you.
