When your best just isn’t good enough
Posted on 15. Jun, 2010 by Keith Scott in Motivation
We have all heard the phrase, “just do your best.” It somehow makes us all feel better if we know that we or someone has given their “best.” It is kind of like a get-out-of-jail-free card…meaning, as long as we do, what we perceive to be our “best” then it doesn’t matter what happens afterwards. I used to prescribe to this thinking too and I still tell people to do their best at times.
The problem with doing “your best” is that our best efforts are way too subjective to our present experiences and reality. How do you really know what your best is at the end of the day? The answer is, you don’t. Most people never really get to the point where they have done their best. They may perceive that they have given their best, with effort, however when in reality they have no idea what really is their best.
Doing your best many times is equivalent to trying hard. Trying hard, doesn’t always bring success however. The truth is, you will probably never know how hard you can really push yourself, because most people will quit before that point is ever reached. When people reach a certain point of pain and discomfort, the mind quits and the body follows. In reality, most people can do way more physically than we ever thought without even getting close to being in any kind of physical danger. It is the mind that sets the limits to what we can do and what are “best is” at any given moment. The answer then is to train the mind to do more, tolerate more, push through more, and set new “best efforts” every single time out. This is not an easy task for anyone, because pain and exhaustion makes cowards of us all.
What people need to learn how to do is simply to push through comfort zones, past experiences and learn to do better than his or her best. Think about a time when think you did your best in the gym for a minute. Be honest with yourself…did you have anymore left in the tank? Could you have pushed a little harder? Could your best have been even better? The truth is, it probably could have been better. We know this once we are comfortable again. That is when it is easy. The hard part is pushing to do better when we are in the zone of pain and discomfort.
That’s what I love about training athletes. They have no real perception of what their best is, and even if they do, they are entrusting me to figure it out for them. Once you do that, your coach, or trainer will make sure you always break through new barriers and set new bench marks for what your best is each session. The client or the athlete’s responsibility is to just to trust in the coach and in their abilities and do more and better each training session.
The next time you are working out or training, and you think you have done your best and have reached the limit, do a little more. Go into your training session with that thought before you start. Know that you are going to push harder and do better even when the pain is too much and the discomfort level is high for you to take. Each time you bust through a new “door” of doing better, your best will always improve. Take baby steps. Each time you do, you will get better and your best will never be good enough!
If you are not reaching your goals in the gym, chances are you are not really doing your best…whether you think you are or not. There is a good chance that your efforts are keeping you right where you are, instead of where you want to go. Getting better involves getting mentally tough, busting through barriers and learning how to be comfortable being uncomfortable.
