The Pursuit of Excellence

“The pursuit of excellence is not only a worthy goal it’s also a key to personal freedom.”

The year was 1989 and this quote hung on a giant banner over my middle school cafeteria outside of Washington DC. It was the proud motto of a Napoleonic principal who felt so strongly about its sentiments he instructed students to repeat it with religious fervor.

“The pursuit of excellence is not only a worthy goal it’s also a key to personal freedom.”

It was an ironic choice for a middle school, a place of hall passes, detention, and pre-adolescent angst. Personal freedom as I saw it came in small sips and doses; the choice of which books I read, the path I took home from school, the classmates I befriended.

“The pursuit of excellence is not only a worthy goal it’s also a key to personal freedom.”

It was a gutsy choice. How many kids absorbed the depth of meaning behind the message? At first blush I thought it was about perfection. The idea of a worthy goal represented the unattainable. Yet there was nothing perfect about the messenger. Our school was overcrowded, the students attended school in shifts. I got there so early that my lunch hour was at 10am. I wasn’t even hungry, no wonder I spent so much time looking up at that banner.

I was one of the fortunate ones who benefitted from “talented and gifted classes”. Outside in the hallways I’d encounter kids who had been held back in school so long they’d become young adults; pregnant girls, and tough boys who’d pick fights in the hallways to secure their status. The place smelled funny. The sounds of slamming locker doors and school bells ringing make up the bulk of my audio-memory of those days.

“The pursuit of excellence is not only a worthy goal it’s also a key to personal freedom.”

You may find yourself in a career such as real estate after a succession of vocations. And if you are like me, the notion of what a Realtor is can be ripe with images of pushy salespeople in matching polyester blazers. In reality my office is nothing like this, but the notion remains troubling in my mind.

“The pursuit of excellence is not only a worthy goal it’s also a key to personal freedom.”

The mundane qualities of any vocation can cloud your judgment. Who would be thinking about excellence? Most of us are just thinking about maximizing our incomes while minimizing our hassle.  It takes a leap of faith to make excellence a priority, especially when it seems a far cry from your present reality. Can you seek excellence in your day-to-day professional endeavors?

“The pursuit of excellence is not only a worthy goal it’s also a key to personal freedom.”

It’s the pursuit part that matters, even if you don't succeed. It may require a leap of faith. The personal freedom you seek may not be visible from your present location. I could not see excellence in my dingy overcrowded middle school. The words made little sense to me coming from a man who barely stood shoulder-to-shoulder with half the students.

“The pursuit of excellence is not only a worthy goal it’s also a key to personal freedom.”

Keys unlock doors, grant access, and imply trust. The key to your personal freedom will be different than mine. What we find on the other side of the door will vary. The commonality is that we can all get there through the same means. It’s not the only way; it is however the best way. This is true for us as professionals and it holds true for our clients.

“The pursuit of excellence is not only a worthy goal it’s also a key to personal freedom.”

If you aren’t engaged in the pursuit of excellence in your daily life, you’re missing the best opportunity for self-fulfillment. The challenge is to seek it out, even in the most mundane situations. It may not make sense in the moment. It will make sense in the end. Somewhere out there I hope my middle school principle is enjoying his personal freedom. I have no doubt he earned it.