“The intellect of man is forced to choose perfection of the life or of the work.”
– William Butler Yeats (1865-1939), 1923 Nobel Prize winner for Literature
You see, it’s not true, though.
Perfection – whether of life or work — is a loser’s pursuit.
It’s unattainable.
The last guy to pull it off had God as His dad.
We.
Don’t.
So, why?
Because we want to be seen as the model husband or employee or executive or leader or quarterback or cheerleader or what – the – blank ever else we try to do, perfectly.
Sometimes, good enough is good enough, and every time, all we got is all we’ve got.
“Give 110%?” Nice cliche, but mathematically impossible.
“Leave it all on the field?” If “all” is defined as all you have to offer that particular pursuit, then, that’s cool, but if we’re ever going to expend “all that we have” by definition, we ain’t got nothin’ left.
Not only are we not forced to choose, difference makers are called not to entertain the choice.
In each setting, do the best that we can for the right reasons, and in alignment with our values, our gifts, our skill, abilities and experiences.
That’s what the Last Perfect Guy would have us do.
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