Ever notice that the people who need help or enlightenment the most are often the least likely to: a) know they need it and b) seek it out?
My friend Nishi Whitely of Turnlane Consulting and I compared notes on this today. After reading my book, The Intentional Networker™, and giving it a thumbs up, Nishi said, “Patti, the people who read your book are probably the ones who are already pretty good at networking, but they’ve decided they want to be really great networkers.”
Sounded like a reasonable theory to me.
Likewise, I noted that the business owners most likely to hire Nishi for her business development expertise and objective guidance are probably the people who already run pretty good businesses, but they’ve chosen to run and grow really great businesses.
The pattern was obvious. Whether you’re talking about networking more intentionally or building a thriving business, it seems to be a more difficult stretch to move from “mediocre to good” than to progress from “good to great.” We wondered why.
Perhaps the biggest hurdle might be overcoming the blind spots that keep people and businesses in states of perpetual average-ness. Or maybe it’s a momentum thing. Once you know what you don’t know, it’s easier to take the steps to move forward.
Whatever the case, where do you see yourself? Whether it’s your networking, your business, your career, or even your tennis game or ability your to cook a great meal. Are you blindly stuck in a state of not knowing? Oblivious to how much better you can be? Or are you past that; knowing you can improve and taking the steps, even the small ones, that will move you from good to great?
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So true. The paradox is also in the reality that you often don’t get what you’re asking for or from the requested source. The a-ha moment is more random, and comes from being out there and being open to whatever comes your way.
Provocative and interesting. How do you get those “mediocre” people to bridge to good?
Patti,great blog! I thoroughly enjoyed our conversation. Thank you for linking to my website. One of the things I have noticed that separates those who are moving from good to great from the rest is that they constantly strive to be better and are willing to invest in themselves and their businesses to do so.
Oooh. Love these comments, SueAnn & Stefani. SueAnn, I think sometimes we have to have patience with the people who don’t “get it” yet – but might some day. We also have to recognize and graciously walk away from those who never will get it. Stefani, superb observations. Thanks.
When I do my sales training, the top-notch sales professionals are rarely late, show up totally prepared by listening to the assigned audio & reading. My favorite part is the way they are able to contribute to the conversation about their week. They usually have multiple examples of real world practice of the principles. The undisciplined particpants shrink in their seats .