Thomas Jefferson said, “I’m a great believer in luck,
and I find the harder I work the more I have of it.” The slight edge principle
is that a little more effort will produce a lot more results. Doing just a little
extra, or going a little further, can give you a slight edge. For example, being
two minutes early, rather than two minutes late, can make the difference in a
job interview.
Often very little separates first, second, and third place winners.
Yet, there is a world of difference in the benefits. In a horse race, mere inches
can separate the winner. In a foot race, the winner can be hundredths of a second
ahead of second place. A candidate will win an election if he or she has only
one more vote than the runner-up.
The slight edge is gained by action, not necessarily innate abilities.
Ironically, gifted people are not the ones who usually achieve the slight edge.
Those who put in the extra effort do. Desire is not enough; you must take action.
Action involves doing more than is required or expected. This requires effort
and work, but there is no other way. Thomas Edison once said that genius is one
percent inspiration and ninety nine percent perspiration.
Any business that provides its customers with more than their money’s
worth will always be popular. You are, in effect, an independent enterprise. You
sell your time and services to your employer. If you have a business, you sell
products or services to the public.
Acquiring a slight edge means gaining a competitive advantage. There
are two types of competition. You compete against yourself, for example, when
you are in school and striving for good grades. You compete against others when
you apply for a job, want a promotion, or operate your own business. Consider
yourself your primary competition. To keep up, you have to continually learn,
grow, change and improve. If you stop pursuing self-development, you will stagnate,
your slight edge will vanish, and life will pass you by. The headlines are filled
with examples of people and businesses who developed a slight edge and then, thinking
they had “made it,” rested on their laurels. In short order they were
displaced by those who kept going.
Many try to get by doing as little as possible. They cut corners
at every opportunity. They do only what is expected. Be different. Do what others
don’t. Be a little early. Stay a little late. Know what needs to be done,
and do it, without being asked. Increase your knowledge, skills, and expertise.
Take initiative. Provide more than you are being paid for, and your compensation
will grow. Service precedes rewards. Because of the benefits that will ensue,
it is more effective to do what’s necessary to gain a slight edge.
A common complaint is “Why put in extra effort when it’s
not appreciated?” If you put in extra effort, it will be appreciated—if
not in your current situation, then in another to which it will lead. To acquire
a slight edge, give more than is required, and you will receive more than you
expected. PE
