Last week we asked the question of whether success is a journey or a
destination. The best answer is that it is both.
In
last week's post I mentioned a Stanford psychologist by the name of
Carol Dweck. Dweck's work has been getting a lot of attention lately.
Allow
me to take a minute and connect Dweck's work with the work of Edward
Deci and Richard Ryan. I mentioned the work, of Deci and Ryan, in a post a few weeks ago. If you are unfamiliar, click here to read the post.
Extrinsic
motivation seems to be the most common form of motivation. The
extrinsic things that motivate include houses, cars, diamonds and
parking spots. That said, intrinsic motivation is more
powerful.
Deci
and Ryan created Self-Determination Theory which speaks of three
forms in intrinsic motivation. There are: autonomy, competence, and
relatedness.
Now
it is time to bring in Drucker. Drucker advised that we always strive
for excellence. The main reason to strive for excellence is psychological.
Drucker knew
that getting good at what we do delivered huge psyche rewards. We are not simply talking of competence. We are talking of competence on steroids. It is highly rewarding.
So, Drucker
would say to strive for excellence. The Japanese would call it “Kaizen.” Deci and Ryan use the word competence. And, Dweck recommends we keep on growing. However you wish to conceptualize the
idea, it is important that we be lifelong learners committed to
continual improvement.
To
drive home the importance, of always striving for excellence, Drucker
would tell the story of Phidias, the ancient Greek sculptor. I will
finish this post with the words of Drucker, taken from his book The Daily Drucker.
“The
greatest sculptor of ancient Greece, Phidias, around 440 BC made the
statues that to this day, 2,400 years later, still stand on the roof
of the Parthenon in Athens. When Phidias submitted his bill, the city
accountant of Athens refused to pay it. 'These statues stand on the
roof of the temple, and on the highest hill in Athens. Nobody can see
anything but their fronts. Yet, you have charged us for sculpting
them in the round, that is, for doing their backsides, which nobody
can see.' 'You are wrong.' Phidias retorted. 'The Gods can see them.'
“Whenever
people ask me which of my books I consider the best, I smile and say,
'The next.' I do not, however, mean it as a joke. I mean it the way
Verdi meant it when he talked of writing an opera at eighty in the
pursuit of a perfection that had always eluded him. Though I am older
now than Verdi was when he wrote Falstaff, I am still thinking
and working on two additional books, each of which, I hope, will be
better than any of my earlier ones, will be more important, and will
come a little closer to excellence.
“Action
Point: Pursue perfection in your work, however elusive.”
