Last week I was asked what profound idea or inspiration I had in the last year. It took a while to think through things… not because I had a lot but because it’s easy to underestimate the power of the thoughts we have, and realize that they are profound.
Finally, I thought about where my head has been the last 6+ months. We have been making marginal improvements to JibberJobber. Not just in the last six months, but for the last almost-nine-years, since we launched.
If you add up those marginal, seemingly small changes, over the years, you get something pretty great. Or, on the road to great.
For me, marginal improvements means something that is better, but it doesn’t have to be tons better. We’re not talking about a full make-over… for example, you don’t have to get rid of all of your clothes and buy all new ones. But maybe you buy new socks, or new shoes, or a new tie, or a new blouse. That is a small, bite-sized, manageable, affordable improvement.
Maybe a marginal improvement is that today you work on smiling more, even though you will not see anyone. Smile while you are on the phone. Smile while you write that email. Heck, I just smiled while writing this line, and THINGS CHANGED in my brain! My attitude changed a little bit. It sounds crazy, and I have no science or links to back it up, but what if you smiled more. An affordable improvement that is so small, but it might just take you down a better path.
A business mentor I’ve had for years, Mark LeBlanc, sent me a card that I have in front of me… on the front it says “consistency trumps commitment.” The power of consistent actions, and consistent improvements, no matter how small, has played a big part in my business, and the fact that we’re still around even while a half-dozen competitors have come and gone over the years.
I invite you to think about marginal improvements you can make in your job search, or personal life. Move forward without becoming overwhelmed by the idea that you can’t improve because improvement costs too much, either in time or money. Make the tiny, doable, bite-sized changes that you can, and let those accumulate over the days, weeks and months.
This is something you can do!