Two Steps You Can Take to Prevent Mediocrity in Your Organization
It happened again. I was at a salad buffet in the Atlanta airport and was served by a young man who clearly didn’t want to be there. (I use the term “served” loosely). He moved very slowly, never gave me eye contact, and mumbled through his words. The woman behind me looked at me as if to say, “I didn’t understand him either.” I asked him to repeat himself twice. I came prepared to tip well, had I gotten good service. In the end, I wanted some of my payment back.
I see mediocrity in too many places—retailers, cinemas, markets, and cafes. Guest services and customer service agents have lowered the bar; the wait staff at restaurants is often not fully staffed. We pay more and enjoy less. To call the server I met at the airport “mediocre” would be a compliment.
I’ve written about this earlier—but today, I want to examine a deeper problem.
Following the pandemic, we returned to a new normal at work that’s not necessarily better. While inflation remains high, the economy has, for the most part, kicked back into gear. Over 336,000 jobs were created last month. People are traveling like never before; customers are purchasing at higher rates. Our problem is not with the consumer. It’s with the vendor. Customer activity is up, but customer satisfaction is down. What seems to be the issue?
I believe it’s a satisfaction with being mediocre.
How Mediocrity Works
I’m not alone. Interestingly, our country has often led the way in terms of customer experience. Brands like the Ritz Carlton, Nordstrom and Chick-fil-A have modeled what superior service can be. Human nature, however, kicks in when two realities exist:
When times are easier, we can let down our guard, feeling we’ll still be successful.
When we feel like victims of a broken system, we assume we deserve rest or relief.
Consider this: mediocrity reveals itself during good times. Greatness emerges during bad times. In good times, we tend to lose focus. We feel the momentum and assume we don’t need to push as hard. John Maxwell taught me years ago, “When you have momentum, you’re not as good as you appear. When you don’t, you’re better than you appear.”
❝When you have momentum, you’re not as good as you appear. When you don’t, you’re better than you appear.❞— JOHN C. MAXWELL |
The word, “mediocre” was originally a mountain climbing term. It literally means “middle of the rock.” It describes climbers who choose to stop halfway up. Reaching the summit is too hard. It’s not worth it. Our commitment to excellence is eclipsed by our mental laziness. Most of life’s battles are won or lost in your mind. This means they’re determined before you ever begin. What goes on in your mind comes out in your life.
The Need for Stimulation
One of our chief problems is that we live in a time of over-stimulation. We’ve come to rely upon the ping, the pop up and the notification on our portable devices. Our inward motivation has decreased as our outward stimulation has increased. When that external stimulus is missing, we stop. Relying on externals to perform is dangerous, be it people or perks. Want evidence? The mental, financial, and physical fitness of Americans are down. The average American:
is 23 pounds overweight.
spends 103% of their income.
is $90,460 in debt.
tells four lies a day, or 1,460 a year.
takes 6 years to complete 4 years of college.
spends 27.5 hours a week on entertainment.
Our problem is we naturally migrate toward mediocrity. And it affects our teams.
Preventing Mediocrity from Sabotaging Your Team
The best leaders I know prevent the spirit of mediocrity with two leadership approaches:
Position yourself as an “underdog,” not the “top dog.”
Head coach Nick Saban does this with his Alabama football team. He knows the vulnerability of being a top dog. So, he gathers data before each game to profile his team as an “underdog.” The opposition thinks they can beat us, but let’s put a target on their back instead of vice versa. You and I must genuinely cast a vision for conquest to our teams that challenges them to step up to a higher level and never rest on their laurels. The message is: we’re on our way, but we’re not there yet. We’ve got something to prove.Offer benchmarks that create stretch marks.
I’m sure that young man who waited on me at the salad buffet felt like he was doing an adequate job. Sadly, that was his target. I bet his training was mediocre at best. Most people need leaders to stretch them which means we must set benchmarks very high for effective performance. It would have made a difference at the buffet if the benchmarks were: look customers in the eye, speak clearly, smile and act as though you enjoy serving them. Our standards must stretch our team.
Let’s always keep the motivation for excellence in front of us. My friend Elias Amash said:
❝Once you lick the lollipop of mediocrity, you’ll suck the rest of your life.❞— ELIAS AMASH |
This article is inspired by the book, The Eight Paradoxes of Great Leadership, available anywhere books are sold.