The Last Ten Percent
If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!
The last part of any project, the final ten percent is in many ways the most critical and also the most taxing.
The last ten percent thins the herd, and separates the great from the merely good.
The commitment required to complete the last ten percent is massive, and the temptation to settle for good enough is often too appealing for most to resist.
Professionals never settle.
In most fields, there’s an awful lot of work put into the last ten percent of quality.
This is where you truly sweat the small stuff as quality is about doing all things with love, care and attention to detail.
Getting your golf score from 77 to 70 is far more difficult than getting it from 120 to 113.
Making pastries the way they do at a fancy restaurant is a lot more work than making brownies at home.
The last ten percent is the signal we look for, the calling card of greatness.
Following through on the last ten percent is the way we communicate care and expertise and professionalism.
If all you’re doing is the standard amount, or settling for good enough, than all you’re going to get is the standard compensation. That’s all you really deserve.
The hard part is the last ten percent, sure, or even the last one percent, but it’s the hard part because everyone is busy doing the easy part.
Most people are not hard acts to follow as they believe that last ten percent isn’t worth the effort.
How wrong and causality creating this belief is.
The secret is to go the extra mile, to do more, better quality work and to finish the last ten percent strong.
That is the key to greatness, and that’s why everything counts!
WHAT TO DO NOW? Share your two-cents worth on the significance of the final ten percent of a project or goal.
Tags: Gary Ryan Blair, Greatness, Ten Percent
3 Responses to “The Last Ten Percent”
Donovan Grant June 19th, 2012 at 2:09 pm
Great article Gary. I like the concept of the last 10%… Having experienced situations of not following through in the past, I decided to develop the habit of becoming a finisher. It is not easy, but the rewards are worth all the effort that it takes. The thing that keeps me in the game when others decide to quit is to make sure that I am involved in goals that resonate with me rather than working on someone else’s goal. Thanks for the message.
Donovan
Helen June 19th, 2012 at 6:41 pm
My last 10% includes these coaching lessons -
Think Small
The Mighty Purge
Leave a Mark, Not a Stain (VIP!)
Self-Directed Leadership (not without you!).
I will leave my Calling Card!
Bharat June 27th, 2012 at 6:23 am
So true and when I reflect on my past I agree that with a little more vigor on the last 10% I would have finished stronger and with greatness. Thank you for the motivation.