212 – The Extra Degree. I have tried to live by this philosophy for quite a while now. I don’t remember when exactly though probably sometime in the late nineties is when I first heard of Sam Parker and this thought:
“At 211 degrees, water is hot. At 212 degrees, it boils. And with boiling water, comes steam. And with steam, you can power a train. Just one extra degree can make all the difference.”
Sometimes the difference between first and second place, the difference between success and failure is so small it is barely noticeable but is indeed there.
Watch the video here for a few examples of what I mean.
212 The Extra Degree
The challenge I see with always going that extra degree is it becomes expected of you. The moment you want to slack off a little bit and take a breather for a minute you don’t just lower yourself to everyone else’s level but you also get labeled as suddenly not caring or no longer trying and when you are seen as that then you are seen as replaceable even though you, for just a moment, where down at everyone else’s level. The same level The Man is otherwise happy with.
Maybe operating at 212 degrees constantly is not the greatest of ideas when you work for The Man. Unless of course you are on a sports team like the Chicago Bears and then of course you must give 100% all the time. And again, as soon as Brandon Marshall starts slacking off Coach Trestman is going to be looking to make some changes.
As an entrepreneur you can operate at whatever level you want. I suggest you operate at 212* though. Hustle. Hustle. Hustle. As an entrepreneur you don’t have The Man breathing down your back all day. You do however have to answer to yourself.
And sometimes we are harder on ourselves than The Man can be.
And that is what makes us do it. That is what makes us champions.
