Excellence is easy to admire when we see the finished result. It is much harder to practice when the schedule is tight, the process has become frustrating, or one more step feels unnecessary. Most of us want excellent outcomes. The real test is whether we are willing to pay what excellence requires along the way—time, preparation, patience, discipline, difficult conversations, and sometimes additional cost. The temptation rarely sounds like, “Let’s lower the standard.” It sounds more reasonable: “This should be good enough. We have already spent enough time on this. Let’s keep moving.” When those disciplines become habits, excellence becomes repeatable rather than accidental. Are you willing to pay the price excellence requires? I learned that lesson very personally on one of our projects. We spent nearly two months working through almost two hundred possibilities for a home’s exterior color. Our normal process was clear. Once the color was selected, we would have the actual EIFS material prepared as a final sample for approval before ordering the full amount. But this time I was frustrated. The decision took much longer than expected, the schedule was affected, and I wanted to move forward. I had the correct color number, so I placed the order. What I failed to notice was that I had ordered that number from the wrong paint manufacturer. The finished color coat was applied first to the guest casita while the client and I were out of town. When I returned and came over the hill toward the jobsite, I immediately knew something was terribly wrong. The guest casita was hot pink. I hadn’t made the mistake because I didn’t know the process. I made it because I had become impatient with the process. I knew the additional step we normally took, but in my frustration and haste, I skipped it. Excellence is often protected by the steps that feel least important when we are under pressure. The client was remarkably gracious and even offered to cover the cost of correcting the mistake. I declined. It was my mistake, and I believed it was my responsibility to correct it and absorb the cost. Interestingly, the incorrectly ordered material eventually found a home with a trade partner building churches in Mexico that needed a pinkish color. I can smile about the pink church today, but I’ll never forget the lesson. “Excellence is expensive in the moment—but compromise is costly over time.” — Jerry R. Meek Had I followed the process, it would have cost one more sample and a little more time. Skipping that step cost far more. The encouraging part is that excellence is not reserved for people who never make mistakes. It is built by people who are willing to slow down, learn, correct, and strengthen the process. Early in my career, I thought excellence was primarily about the finished product, the appearance, the quality people could see, the final impression. Over time, I learned that excellence is rarely created at the end. Excellence is built throughout the process. It is found in the review that no one notices, the phone call made before an issue becomes a problem, the preparation completed before anyone asks for it, and the willingness to stop and correct something rather than cover it up and keep moving. When that becomes a habit, excellence starts showing up before anyone has to ask for it. Problems are caught earlier. Trust grows. People know the standard and begin protecting it themselves. But there is an important distinction. Excellence is not perfectionism. Perfectionism can be driven by fear, pride, image, or the need to control every outcome. Biblical excellence is rooted in stewardship. It asks, “What has God entrusted to me, and am I faithfully giving Him my best with what I have?” Paul the Apostle said, “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord.” That changes the audience. We do not pursue excellence merely because a client is watching, a supervisor will inspect our work, or someone might recognize our effort. Ultimately, our work is part of what God has entrusted to us. Excellence also requires humility. We must be willing to receive correction, acknowledge when we have fallen short, and learn from people who may see something we do not. Excellence is not demonstrated by defending every decision we make. Sometimes the pursuit of a higher standard begins by admitting that someone else can help us become better. Excellence requires enough confidence to pursue a high standard and enough humility to admit when you have missed it. That encourages me because none of us gets this right every time. The pink casita certainly proved that for me. God does not ask us to pretend we never make mistakes. He asks us to be faithful with what He has entrusted to us. Sometimes faithfulness means preventing the mistake. Sometimes it means recognizing it quickly, taking responsibility, correcting it, learning from it, and becoming better because of it. That means a mistake does not have to disqualify us from excellence. If we respond with humility and responsibility, it can become part of how God develops better judgment, stronger character, and greater trustworthiness in us. Yesterday’s compromise does not have to become tomorrow’s standard. If there is an area where your standard needs strengthening, start with what is directly in front of you. Define what faithful excellence requires. Correct what needs correcting. Learn from it. Then repeat the disciplines that protect the standard before pressure arrives again. The Warrior King Solomon gives us a clear standard: “Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might.” That does not mean everything deserves unlimited time, money, or attention. Stewardship requires wisdom. Sometimes the excellent decision is to simplify. Sometimes the excellent decision is to stop. Sometimes something doesn’t need to be perfect; it just needs to be right, responsible, and complete. The question is not, “Did I make everything flawless?” The better question is: Did I faithfully steward what God entrusted to me? If the answer is not today, there is hope. Learn. Correct. Begin again. If the answer is yes, keep building on the disciplines that got you there. Excellence is not one heroic decision. It is a series of faithful ones. Over time, those faithful decisions shape more than what you produce. They shape your character, your reputation, the trust others place in you, and the standard you leave behind for those who follow. That is the opportunity in pursuing excellence: not to become flawless, but to become increasingly faithful, dependable, and worthy of the trust God and others place in you.

Keep building, keep growing, and never settle,

-Jerry.

REFLECTION

1. Where could one stronger decision raise the standard in my work or leadership
2. Am I pursuing excellence from faithful stewardship—or perfection from fear
3. What standard do I need to strengthen through one decision this week?

Application Business Leadership

Jerry Meek