What is Your Tolerance?
Here is what I believe is the most important key to goal achievement: Your tolerance. Let me explain.
As an engineer by training, I was schooled in tolerances. Tolerance is the amount by which a certain measurement can vary from the specification; usually expressed as plus or minus some amount. I remember working for a specialty metal manufacturer as an intern and there was a specification that allowed for impurities to be included in the metal. When one particular batch was finished outside the tolerance, rather than throw the (very expensive) metal away, they just changed the specification. I digress, but not by much.
We all have specifications for what we will tolerate in difference areas of our lives. How much weight we allow ourselves to gain before taking action; how much debt we’re comfortable having; how far we will commute to work. How many times have you adjusted your specifications though? Some people have a high tolerance for abusive relationships. Others have a high tolerance for the amount of disorder they allow in their environment. How often have you “settled” for something other than what you really want?
The most successful and powerful people do not adjust their specifications. They demand that they be met, whether it is of themselves or their team. And having a strict tolerance for one area in your life, doesn’t mean that other areas could be out of tolerance. Some areas may not have a specification at all!
Imagine someone whose specification for income is $1,000,000 a year. There are plenty of people who have that specification, and when their income falls below that level, or is even threatened to fall below that level, they take action to correct it. They may put in some extra hours, seek out a new deal or find some inefficiencies in their business to weed out. They will not be below $1,000,000 for long. This same person may have a very wide tolerance for body weight. If he or she is up 50 pounds, she may find this completely acceptable and therefore no action is taken.
I could list dozens of examples like this, but I think you get the point. Think about your most important goals and how much you’re willing to deviate from them. If something is must in your life, it will probably have a low tolerance. If not, you may being willing to let things slide when your expectations aren’t met.
If there is something you really want that you’re not getting, examine this idea. How could you become less accepting of deviations from your standard. You may start by slowly tightening up your expectations. Narrow down your tolerance step by step until you are hitting the bullseye. Once you’ve established a tight tolerance for one of your goals, it is very difficult to go back. Just start tightening up a spec in another area.
Wishing you only success!
Kevin