We hear a lot about striving for excellence — and in general, that’s a good thing. But I want to talk today about why aiming for adequate might, at times, be a better goal.
It’s been a pretty rough week. I struggle, as it is, with being a stay-at-home mom, because I am so. not. good at this. It is so not “my thing.” I’m analytical and bold, good at being a mover and shaker in the public sphere — not so good at being gentle and nurturing with children. Or, really, connecting with them on any significant level. I want to, but it’s far from natural.
On top of that, chronic illness has largely stolen my ability to function. The house is wreck. The children are unruly. We’re unable to extend hospitality, serve at church, etc. And simple things like enjoying a meal are beyond reach. (How can you enjoy a meal, when almost all foods are off-limits?) Add pregnancy hormones and sleep deprivation to the mix, and this week was just UGLY.
And then encouragement came from a very unlikely place — the business class I have to take for school.
Why Adequate?
I had to watch a time management lecture by Randy Pausch. (The whole thing is excellent, by the way, and very enjoyable to watch, although he uses a mild expletive a few times.) In the course of this lecture, he said the following:
(In case you can’t view the image, it says: if you do the right things adequately, that’s much more important than doing the wrong things beautifully.) If you follow me on Facebook, you may have seen me post the quote.
Now, I’ve heard a similar time management quote. Something like, “there is nothing so useless as doing efficiently that which should not be done at all.” In time management terms, it’s the same idea. Don’t waste time doing a really great job of something you don’t even need to be doing.
But this weekend, the quote struck me at a whole different level — a vocational one.
It is okay if I’m never good at this job.
It is okay if “adequate” is all I ever manage.
That is still much more important than to be the world’s most excellent _______ in any other job.
Maybe there is some other vocation that I could carry out beautifully. But if it’s the wrong thing, it’s still hollow and unimportant.
So although excellence is a worthy goal, this week, I’m aiming to be adequate…at the right things.
Oh Rachel. I so needed to hear that. I actually love being a house wife. It was always my dream but I finally marry a really good Christian man who supports me and I am not able to be the perfect house wife I always wanted to be. Because, I have chronic illness, and just the last four weeks, I had a car accident, an incident where all my muscles locked and in number 10 pain, a heart attack and then heart surgery, then a month long bronchitis. So my home is not what I want it to be. And really I needed to hear what you had to say. Thanks so much for those words.
Love it! 🙂 You are an excellent you.