Take The Word “Average” Out of Your Vocabulary Forever
I fell into the average trap at the worst time
“Tell us something unique about you?”
My company’s CEO asked me this question during an All Hands meeting the other day. I was the employee spotlight of the month, and the entire company tuned into the Zoom call to hear what I had to say.
For the record, I had been crushing the interview until that point. But that question stopped me in my tracks. I awkwardly laughed and said exactly what was on my mind.
“You know, I don’t think there’s anything unique.”
Really, Cal?
Wrong answer.
But for whatever reason, in that moment, I believed I was average.
There’s a great irony in feeling average.
It’s easy to fall into the trap of thinking you’re average.
We watch documentaries about extraordinary people doing things like climbing mountains or winning championships. We see beautiful people on TikTok going on their ninth beach vacation of the year. We see couples quitting their jobs and traveling the world for fun.
It’s easy to watch all this and think I’m not any of those things, so that makes me average.
Then we lay down our heads at night, get under the covers, and forget how far we’ve come ourselves.
We forget all that we’ve accomplished and all we’ve overcome to get where we are.
Think about it: my company nominated me as the employee spotlight, and for a moment, I took that for granted.
But that’s the irony with comparing yourself to others. While you’re busy doubting yourself, someone else is watching you on a Zoom call and thinking, “I wish I had what he has.”
Your background is exactly what the world needs.
When I said, “I don’t think there’s anything unique about me,” I was thinking. Well, I’m an average-looking white male from Ohio. I got B’s in school. I don’t have a story that makes me unique.
I forgot about the fact that I was training for my 3rd marathon in 12 months. I forgot that I switched careers and moved 1,200 miles away to a new city and thrived. I forgot I was a writer and that my newsletter and writing grew 50% in 6 months.
Worst of all, I forgot where I came from.
I forgot that it was my family who taught me curiosity and empathy.
I forgot that it was my mentors and coaches who taught me the value of consistency and hard work.
It’s that background that makes me unique. If you want to call that average, then I’ll go ahead and throw that word out of my vocabulary.
Magic happens when you focus on your own scorecard.
Comparison is the thief of joy, says Teddy Roosevelt.
He means that you really can accomplish anything when you forget what others are doing, lower your expectations, and focus on your own scorecard.
I mentioned earlier that I ran three marathons this year. There was a time not so long ago when I didn’t think it was possible for me to run one marathon. But I made it a goal anyway.
I learned that it’s impossible to get better at running if you compare yourself to others.
Why?
Because everyone is faster than you. Especially when you’re starting out. Everyone is passing you on the trail. Your times are not even close to qualifying for Boston. In fact, they’re not even in the same ballpark.
But when you focus on your own training, you will get a little better each day and relinquish that desire to be like those incredible athletes on Netflix documentaries.
If you can do that while having some fun with it, well, that’s where the magic happens.
That’s when you go from doing something “average” to doing something to the best of your ability.