"Excellence is an art won by training and habituation. We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act but a habit."
- Aristotle
Good Day EWI!
I hope this finds all of you excited about this milestone in EWI's history! I know many Chapter's have already celebrated the 75th Anniversary this month, with many more Chapter meetings to come before the end of April. I have seen some great photos and video clips already from Chapters celebrating and I can feel the energy!
As I have just returned from vacationing in Palm Springs where I attended the Kraft Nabisco Championship tournament of the LPGA tour and given that it is the Master's at Augusta this weekend, I thought I would draw on some observations about the game of golf and how it pertains to excellence. The trophy shot above is the actual KNC Cup that sits on the bridge spanning Poppy's Pond and the 18th green for the final Sunday round, by the way.
Watching the LPGA tour players each day is indeed exciting, but what is truly amazing is watching them practice before each round. Each player has a routine that they strictly follow, not only in practice, but also before they make any shot during a round; whether it is a drive off the tee or a one foot putt, they systematically follow their own unique routine of habits. The only thing in common about these player's is that they each follow a defined regiment. Some regiments produce better results at the end of the round, needless to say.
I think we can liken this to our Chapters and how diverse each one is. We all have the same Mission and Vision, but we can differ greatly in the end product delivered to our members. That diversity speaks to each Chapter's culture which in and of itself, is to be celebrated. Nuances are fine except for in one area where we must all come to agreement and that is with our newly developed core Values.
Integrity, Respect, Excellence and Collaboration. Each value is a cornerstone and all to be treated equally. Values provide an organization a moral compass with which all stakeholders can hold themselves and others to. They are also an amazing tool to refer to when we are faced with difficult decisions.
Excellence is where I want to focus today. Is it a destination or a journey? One of my favourite authors and speakers is Malcolm Gladwell. In his book, "Outliers, The Story of Success", he examines what that one differential is that determines success. The answer is 10,000 hours.
To master anything in life, including the game of golf, it takes 10,000 hours of practice. That's it. Very simple. So, if I wanted to become a world class golfer, I could achieve it by practicing 24/7 for the next 417 days. That is just not going to happen and really, I am okay with that! I highly recommend reading all of Malcolm's works. Very fascinating writer for the New Yorker (and he's a fellow Canuck, so I love him)!
Each of us does the very best in all that we do, but let us remember please, that we are each on our own path to excellence. Passion for the task at hand is the fuel that drives us forward and I know we all have an abundance of that for EWI! We can best help one another by mentoring and sharing knowledge with other fellow members and staff in a positive manner.
This morning I witnessed firsthand a shining example of excellence from Anna McCutcheon, EWI of San Diego. I was able to view the incredible masterpiece she has created in a new, official biography presentation of our Founder, Lucille Johnson Perkins. I am humbled and honoured to be able to debut this presentation at Spring Conference next week. Anna is a master story teller as we first witnessed with her role in the 70th Anniversary video. She has yet again come through for EWI after spending hours and hours researching Lucille. I cannot thank you enough Anna for making my vision come true!
I know you are all anxious to view this biography. We are hoping to host a special Webinar on the 29th of April (our actual 75th Anniversary day) so everyone can dial in and watch it. More to come on that from the team at the office!
So, in closing, I would like to end by saying, "Swing Easy", especially with one another! I hope to see you next week in Chattanooga!
- K
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