Never Settle For Less

Yesterday a friend of mine got me really fired up.  We were having a discussion about buying a house and he spouts off and says "The Average person our age is blah blah blah".  As soon as he said average I stopped paying attention.  That word absolutely drives me up a wall.  Average has never been very attractive to me so it makes me crazy when someone quotes an average or a statistic.

I had to look at faithful www.dictionary.com to figure out why I despise that word so.  On the site the word average is described as a typical amount, rate, degree, etc. To me that reads the same as everybody else.  Never has that option been attractive.  Not in the school yard, high school, college, working, blogging, or working out.  Why do anything with an aim of being normal???
Seriously…According to statistics (depending on who you quote)

• 65% of Americans are overweight –> I used to be one of them until I decided it wasn’t for me.  The statistic is sad but it can be swayed easily.  Other countries are living healthy so one of the wealthiest in the world sure can.
• 95% of diets fail–> I won’t even touch this one.  We all know there is no quick fix for the body!
• 90% of new businesses fail –>  Yet another statistic that can depress us if we allow.  I use it to motivate me.  Somewhere out there 10% of business owners know what’s going on.  It seems to be in my best interest to find them if I want to succeed.
• 70% of Americans hate their jobs–> One time I had a job I wasn’t too fond of.  My manager was indirect, the tasks weren’t mentally stimulating, and I felt stagnant.  I did the only thing I knew how….I sucked it up, found a new position, and moved on with my life.
• The average credit card debt is 9,000USD–> No sir I don’t like it.  If backing myself up 9 grand is how I fit in I think I’ll pass.  No really I’m serious I’ll pass.

Far too many of us hide behind averages and statistics to make us feel better.  Saying things like

• If 65% of people are overweight then its ok right?
• If 70% of people hate their jobs then its ok if I rot away in mine too right?
• If my first business venture fails then I should just hang em up because 90% of new business fails anyway right?
• If I have 6,000USD in credit card debt I’m good since the average is 9,000 USD right?

Whenever I hear this I just want to drive a steak into my heart because I absolutely don’t care what the average is. It doesn’t relate to me in the slightest bit.  There are only a few BILLION people on this earth.  I’m not very interested in trying to emulate them all.  I’d rather exceed the average and enjoy myself in the process.

Status quo is for people who want average results.  I’d prefer to aim for something higher.  That’s why I sprint out the last 1/2 mile of a 6 mile run.  That’s why I slap on 45 lb plates when I do dips.  That’s why I consume 1 book a month.  That’s why I seek out danger and new experiences.  Being average is easy and so much less rewarding than truly extending yourself and growing.

I’d like to close with this final thought.  There’s enough average going around.  In the event that you decide to be ABOVE AVERAGE the precious "average’ won’t budge.  The law of large numbers says little ole me can’t change the average.  I can and will strive to change myself and remain above average in the weight room and in life.  Hopefully you will too.

This entry was posted on Thursday, August 30th, 2007 at 7:44 pm and is filed under Other, Motivation. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.