Are You Giving Your Last 10%?

The mountaineer shouting down the cliff face urges the person below to hang on . . . the crowd roars the distressed Olympic marathoner to the finish line . . . the intrepid explorer crawls across the burning desert . . .We’ve all seen enough movies to know what the heroic version of giving the last 10% looks like.

But what does the last 10% look like in real life?

In a Seth Godin blog post from a few years ago, he described what essentially makes you stand out from the others: the last 10%.It implies that you’ve already committed to giving 90% of everything it takes.

It’s not just about under-promising and over-delivering. It’s about delivering something exceptional even when you haven’t promised.

The last 10% can be tougher than the previous 90%. But it’s worth the extra effort. After all, if it were easy, everyone would be doing it. As Godin says:

“The last ten percent is the signal we look for, the way we communicate care and expertise and professionalism . . . The hard part is the last ten percent, sure, or even the last one percent, but it's the hard part because everyone is busy doing the easy part already.” 

We all want to make a contribution and add value to our organizations. And organizations want to give added value to their clients.

Adding value just might mean going for that last 10%.

Think about your last ten percent:

• What do you do that is unique, above and beyond expectations, to deliver results to and for your organization?

• What do you do to differentiate yourself from the competition?

• How do you give the last 10% of meaningful value to your clients?

The last 10% is the space within which the most remarkable things can happen.