Excellence Demands Excellence
Parrish argues that improving your work requires raising the standards you accept. Working with skilled practitioners, or studying their work closely, can reveal weaknesses you previously overlooked.
THE IDEA
Masters of their craft don't merely want to check off a box and move on. They're dedicated to what they do, and they keep at it. Master-level work requires near fanatical standards, so masters show us what our standards should be. A master communicator wouldn't accept a ponderous, rambling email. A master programmer wouldn't accept ugly code. Neither of them would accept unclear explanations as understanding.
We'll never be exceptional at anything unless we raise our standards, both of ourselves and of what's possible. For most of us, that sounds like a lot of work. We gravitate toward being soft and complacent. We'd rather coast. That's fine. Just realize this: if you do what everyone else does, you can expect the same results that everyone else gets. If you want different results, you need to raise the bar.
How to Raise the Bar
Working with a master firsthand is the best education; it's the surest way of raising the bar. Their excellence demands your excellence. But most of us aren't lucky enough to have that opportunity. Still, not all is lost. If you don't have the chance to work with a master, you can still surround yourself with people who have higher standards by reading about them and their work.
When to use it
A junior designer is assigned to work closely with a renowned creative director. The junior's initial drafts are constantly rejected not for obvious errors, but for subtle lack of polish and coherence—standards they never knew existed.
An amateur writer decides to rigorously study and type out entire novels by their favorite author to internalize sentence rhythm, structure, and word choice, effectively 'surrounding' themselves with a higher standard.
A sales team has grown complacent with generic pitches. The team leader assigns everyone to deconstruct recordings of the company's top performer, identifying specific phrases, questions, and tonal shifts that embody a standard of excellence they must now mimic and adopt.
FROM THEORY TO EVERYDAY LIFE
In practice
Master Communicator's Email Standard
A skilled communicator edits a long email until its request and supporting reasons are clear. Comparing the versions shows where repetition and digressions obscured the message.
Master Programmer's Code Quality
A skilled programmer asks for clearer names, simpler control flow, and an explanation of design choices. These specific revisions give a less experienced colleague standards they can apply to later work.
Unclear Explanations Are Not Understanding
When an explanation is unclear, both practitioners ask for another attempt. Explaining the concept exposes gaps that a familiar phrase or a polished result can conceal.
A MOMENT TO REFLECT
Put it to work.
In what area of your life have you been coasting with average standards? What would 'master-level' standards look like for that activity?
Who is a master (living or historical) in your field that you can study more deeply? What specific standard of theirs would be most challenging for you to adopt?
Think of a recent piece of work you considered 'finished.' Would a true master have accepted it? If not, what specifically would they have demanded you improve?
CONTINUE THE CONVERSATION
Source texts
- Clear Thinking Turning Ordinary Moments into Extraordinary Results (Shane Parrish)