As a leader, we all have standards. What is acceptable performance? What will you not tolerate? We all want to rise to the next level, and we expect that of our team. So I have a question for all of us, myself included, do you have a standard of excellence?

Webster’s New World Dictionary defined excellence as “superiority.” Superiority begins and ends with you, the leader. You must expect excellence from yourself, live it out and be an example for others.

Co-Founder of Ritz-Carlton Hotel Co. Horst Schulze authored the book, “Excellence Wins.” If you have ever stayed at a Ritz-Carlton, you will experience excellence from the moment you walk in the door (or when you book your stay).

Allow to be clear on excellence. Be careful about the comparison. Eleanor Roosevelt
has a famous quote that I love, “Comparison is the thief of joy.”

When you have a standard of excellence, it is based on talents, skills, and the resources available. There’s no room for comparison. The bottom line is, are you maximizing all you have available to achieve excellence?

Here are some self-examining questions that may help you assess how you are
doing on the excellence train.

  • Do you place excellence as a high value?
  • How have you communicated your standards to your people?
  • What are you allowing (performance-wise) that needs to be addressed?
  • Have you asked your people, “What does excellence look like to you?”
  • Do you think you’re consistent with the message of your standard of excellence?

We are competing for talent, resources, and customers. We must prioritize creating a standard of excellence, so our team knows it is the only standard we will accept.