“Growth is the great separator between those who succeed and those who do not. When I see a person beginning to separate themselves from the pack, it’s almost always due to personal growth.”—John C. Maxwell
Considering the concept of kaizen—the Japanese word that has come to be associated with “continuous improvement”—it is easy to think one is failing when they are not seeing significant growth. Growth—that is, the progression Spiritually, Physically, Intellectually, Emotionally, and Socially toward “well-centered fitness”—is never linear. Growth follows more of a parabolic curve toward an asymptote. Change initially brings rapid growth, but growth slows over time. It is when progress slows that most people lose interest and effort diminishes. It is often when we believe it is “mission accomplished”, and we stop working toward the goal.
In exercise physiology, we have the principle of reversibility—“use it or lose it.” For some, age and/time are the excuse for this. It is mostly a lack of effort. Our progress reverts to some rate of decline.
Growth is sometimes the maintenance of progress—the “keep keeping on.” There comes a time when our growth mindset becomes apparent by our progressive separation from our peers. This is most easily seen in the physiological changes of aging (e.g., the maintenance of muscle mass and lean body composition v. muscle wasting [sarcopenia] and creeping body fat). But we can see it, as well, in our Spiritual, Intellectual, Emotional, and Social well-being.
Separation is a choice—just as growth (kaizen) is a choice. Growth is as much and attitude as it is a measurable progress. Sometimes “better tomorrow” is simply “as good as yesterday” for us as we progress toward the asymptote.
“Great performers are, by definition, abnormal; they strive throughout their entire careers to separate themselves from the pack.”—John Eliot
We must challenge ourselves daily to separate ourselves from the pack. With grattitude, we must….
Be your best today; be better tomorrow.
Carpe momento!