One of the key lessons in little league and girl’s softball is that after you hit the ball, you don’t just run TO first base; you run THROUGH it. That’s because if you only run TO the base, you’re likely to slow down as you arrive, giving the infielders more time to thrown you out. But if you run THROUGH first base, you’re reaching first in full stride, eliminating unneeded delay.
Shifting to work, many of us are guilty of merely running TO (rather than THROUGH) our goals and objectives. So what WOULD running “through” our work goals and objectives look like? Consider:
- Sales goals – not just reaching your sales quotas, but doing so in a way that has you feeling refreshed and invigorated
- Reports – not just turning them in on time, but including in them some truly insightful analysis
- Collaboration – not just working with others, but enjoying your time with them
- Providing constructive feedback – not just articulating performance gaps, but doing so in a way that reengages and motivates.
- Interviewing – not just getting to know applicants, but getting to understand them
Another way to think about this is Embracing the “ER.” There’s great power and impact in adding the letters “e” and “r” to your efforts. Consider:
- What would make the complex simplER?
- What would make the difficult easiER?
- What would make your idea smartER?
- What would make your impact greatER?
- What would make this project go smoothER?
So what would it look like if you “polished the chrome” just a bit more? If you “squared your corners” just a little more fully? If you “upped your game” so that you didn’t just run TO first base, you ran THROUGH first base?