Tuesday, September 17, 2013

My definition of excellence and why you should care

John W. Gardner once said, "Excellence is doing ordinary things extraordinarily well."

I believed in this quote even before I heard it and if you haven't "Googled" Gardner by the time you're reading this line you probably should. He is a man that has his fingerprints on many of the education and welfare programs that the United States continues to use.

I believe in two kinds of greatness.

The first being the home-run-in-the-bottom-of-the-ninth kind. This is the flashy, highlight reel, stuff of legends greatness. There are people out there who seem to live in this world of always being in the right place at the right time and that's partly because they put themselves in that place. The world needs these people, for sure, but what it really needs is the second definition.

(Nu Gamma charter, Jan 18th, 2013)


I believe that there is an intrinsic greatness in always doing right. Start with the small things: hold the door...always, be honest with yourself and others, and make your words as true as the actions needed to support them. Fraternities have this power. You won't need to throw a huge event to get your name out there or spend lots of money on flyers. You'll have a more effective way. Your service-oriented actions will be the machine that pushes your organization into the hearts and minds of those you hope to recruit.

derrick.dubois@phimudelta.org

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