Recently, I was reflecting on how one of our consultants had impressed me with his preparation. Regardless of the fact he had done this particular session many times, I noted that he had two pages of fresh notes with the same level of detail that I would expect from a new facilitator, not someone with his vast experience.
I was really curious – why would he take the time to prepare as though he was doing this for the first time when he knows his stuff so well? When I asked, he said “It’s important to me that I stay fresh and always think about how to get the message across in the best way…you know, the ‘one-percenters’.’’ What a powerful reminder to us all: he keeps challenging himself so that everyone in the room, regardless of their background, their learning style, their prior knowledge, will experience something valuable and powerful from his facilitation. He knows that as skilled as he is, he needs to approach every workshop questioning how he can serve the participants better.
When I was sharing this insight with a colleague, she let me know this facilitator started his work life as a sports coach, and then it struck me: elite sportspeople are always seeking mastery – to be your very best requires sustained focus and you must never assume you are at the top of your game – that is simply dangerous to your success.
And as I reflect on this, I think about how we can take our strengths for granted and perhaps fall into complacency, rather than seeking to continue to improve on those skills. It struck me that complacency can be one of the biggest risks in business; it’s an internal threat that is often only visible once the rot sets in. Even when things are going well, if businesses don’t seek to regularly ask the hard questions such as, ‘How could we do this better?’ or ‘Is this the best way of doing it?’, then younger, more agile and hungrier businesses can quickly win market share. Like a Jack Russell nipping at the heels of your customers, the businesses who do seek to continuously improve can become an attractive option to customers who feel they are being taken for granted or don’t feel that you are always working to do your best for them.
So, when was the last time you asked the question, ‘Is there a better way of doing this?’