Don’t Beat Yourself Up Over Close

There’s an old saying you’ve probably heard. This idiom has to do with horseshoes and hand grenades:

Close only counts in horseshoes (and hand grenades)

You’ve heard of that expression, right?

Well, I believe we can include leadership, or at least portions of it, in this famous phrase.

Close Is Often Good Enough

Hearing that close enough is good enough from another leader may shock you. Yet, I know it’s true.

As leaders, we want to push for excellence. We want to see people doing the best job they can.

Or do we?

What if the best job someone can do is close enough? Would that be acceptable?

Depending on the project or task, close is good enough.

How can this be? Think about the following situations:

You have a fundraising goal of $2,500. You reach $2,400.

The building project completes one week late.

You reach 3 out of the 4 personal improvement goals you set for yourself this year.

Yes, you didn’t reach your goals. You missed out by $100 or the project went over by one week or you hit 75% of your goals.

This can be heartbreaking, especially to perfectionists. We want to see things completed, and on time!

But think about how much was accomplished when the goal is close to completion.

A majority of the funds was raised. Now you only have to raise the last $100. You can brainstorm multiple ways to bring in that last bit of money.

The new building took a little longer to finish, but it’s done. You now have a new building to conduct business or hold service in.

You moved forward in your personal development by meeting 75% of your goals. This puts you leaps and bounds ahead of many others who didn’t complete even one of their goals.

Making progress should be the goal. If you’re coming close to those goals, rejoice!

You’ve moved your business, your church, or your life forward. You’ve taken great strides and accomplished much.

Now that you’ve moved forward, you can continue the momentum you’ve built. Heck, you might even finish the goals you set out to complete.

Remember, close is good enough most of the time.

Question: What do you think about close? Is it good enough or do you require more? Why? Let’s talk about this in the comments below.

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