| Some people waste their lives
trying to avoid making mistakes, but cripple their careers since perfection
isn't attainable. They ultimately make fewer mistakes but accomplish less
because they waste so much time trying to make things perfect. Time is money
in business. Doing a good job today is more profitable than doing a great
job tomorrow. Rock star Jon Bon Jovi's career might have ended before it
started had he not understood this principle. He was only 21 when he won a
contest with a radio station to record his first song in 1983. He quickly
formed a band and released a debut album that went gold the following year.
Suddenly they were opening a concert for ZZ Top at Madison Square Garden.
They were rushed to record a second album and strike while the iron was hot.
It was released in 1985 to poor reviews. Jon was unhappy with the album and
wanted to do better, but timing was critical. The band moved past this bump
in the road and released a better written and produced third album in 1986.
Jon still wasn't happy with the album because he didn't think one particular
song was good enough to be included. Fortunately for him, he listened to the
people who knew the business side of music. That song was "You Give Love a
Bad Name". It became one of the band's most well-known singles and helped
send the album straight to number one. This launched them into super stardom
and they went on to sell more than 100 million albums. Had they waited until
the second album was perfect, they might have lost the support of their
record label before they got to the third.
This is what happened to rock legend Tom Scholz. He's often referred to
as the smartest man in the history of rock and roll. He holds a masters
degree in mechanical engineering from MIT and is listed as an inventor on 34
U.S. patents. The 1976 debut album by his band Boston sold over 16 million
copies and remains the biggest selling debut album in history. It's also
considered one of the best-produced albums in rock history. Scholz played
every instrument on every song and produced the album himself. He's
brilliant and talented. He's also a consummate perfectionist who took eight
years to finish the third album. CBS/Epic Records got tired of waiting for
it, sued him for breach of contract, and dropped Boston from their label.
It's okay to have high standards as long as they're realistic. It's not
okay to procrastinate until everything is exactly the way you want it to be.
Your employer doesn't have time to wait around until you get things perfect
even if you are a genius inventor or legendary rock star. Deadlines must be
kept and payroll must be met. An electrical engineer who attended my
management seminar in Orlando once told me that he has to constantly remind
the engineers he supervises that sometimes 90 percent is good enough.
Highly valued employees don't necessarily make fewer mistakes than run of
the mill employees. In fact, they often make more mistakes because the
number of mistakes increases as productivity increases. They just know the
right way to do it. Making mistakes is okay as long as:
1. They're reasonable mistakes to make. 2. You catch your own mistakes.
3. You correct your own mistakes. 4. You accept responsibility. 5. You don't
blame others. 6. You don't make excuses. 7. You don't hide your mistakes
from your boss. 8. You learn from your mistakes. 9. You don't repeat the
same mistakes. 10. You apologize when it's appropriate.
About the Author
Glenn Shepard is a professional speaker and author of the #1 Best-Seller
"How to Be the Employee Your Company Can't Live Without". He is recognized
internationally as a leading expert in leadership and career development.
Get his free report "The One Thing That Every Employer Values More Than Job
Skills" now
http://www.glennshepard.com/free-resources.html
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