What Are Standards? (And why should I care?)
According to Dictionary.com, standards are defined as: “An accepted or approved example of something against which others are judged or measured.”
Quite simply: Your standards are the expectations you have for yourself and for others. They are a set of principles that you firmly live by, and they can be about anything, from your work ethic to your personal appearance to your relationships… And even your bank account balance. Your standards are so vitally important, because they truly determine the quality of your life.
Here are some examples of those standards:
- Your work ethic: Do you expect to work hard and produce high-quality work?
Or do you expect to just get by and do as little as possible? - Your personal appearance: Do you expect to dress well and take care of your appearance?
Or do you just ‘throw on any old thing’ and think that’s good enough? - Your relationships: Do you expect to be treated with respect and kindness by others?
Or do you just accept being talked down to or mistreated with any level of disrespect? - Your bank account: Do you expect to have a large balance in your account?
Or do you just live paycheck-to-paycheck or deal-to-deal or week-to-week and just get by?
Your standards can be anything you want them to be. But the important thing is that they are clear, realistic, and consistent.
The Standards You Set Determine the Life You Get
Your standards have such a big impact on your lifestyle. If you have high standards, you’ll likely live a more fulfilling and successful life. You’ll be more motivated to achieve your goals, and you’ll be more likely to attract positive people and opportunities into your life.
Here are some of the ways that standards can affect your lifestyle:
- Your career or your business: If you have high standards for your work ethic, you’re more likely to be successful in your career or your business. You’ll be more motivated to work hard and produce high-quality work. You’ll also be more likely to be promoted and earn a higher salary. If you’re a business owner, you’re more likely to have more and better clients & customers, consistently.
- Your relationships: If you have high standards for your relationships, you’re more likely to have happy and fulfilling ones. You’ll be more likely to attract positive people into your life, and you’ll be more likely to be treated with respect and kindness.
- Your personal life: If you have high standards for your personal appearance, you’ll likely feel more confident and self-assured. You’ll also be more likely to attract positive attention from others.
In general, having high standards can lead to a more fulfilling and successful life. If you want to live your best life, it’s important to set high standards for yourself and maintain those standards even when things get tough.
How To Set High Standards For Yourself
Setting high standards for yourself can be challenging, but it’s SO worth it. This is your chance to take control of your life, and really impact those around you. Setting your personal standards is essentially PROGRAMMING your mind, body, and soul to live the way you WANT to live, and not to live by someone else’s standards. That “someone else” could be another person, a company, a government, your family, or even society itself!
In order to set your own high standards, we need to start off with CLARITY. What will you accept? What will you not accept or tolerate? For example, if your financial standard is to have $10,000 in your bank account (an extremely LOW amount, in my opinion), then that’s your standard. If you go below that amount, you’ll work like hell to get it back up again.
If your standard for your personal body weight is 160 pounds, then you should really be uncomfortable if you blow up to 180. Then you’ll get yourself on a diet and get to the gym!
Here are a few tips to help you set high standards:
- Be clear about what you want. What are your goals for your career, your relationships, and your personal life? Once you know what you want, you can start to set standards for yourself.
- Be realistic. Don’t set standards that are impossible to achieve. Start with small, achievable goals, and then gradually increase your standards as you get closer to them.
- Be consistent. The key to maintaining high standards is to be consistent. Don’t give up on your standards, even when things get tough.
Helping Others Raise Their Standards
If you find yourself in any sort of leadership position, whether you’re a parent, or a boss/supervisor or if you run your own business and have others working for you, you may find yourself in a position where you’ll need to help encourage other people to raise their standards for their own benefit and for the benefit of the family or business and all around them.
So how do you do that without offending them? Wow, isn’t THAT a powerful question – especially these days, when everyone seems to be so easily offended, right? Well, I’ve found that the answer to that is to first connect with the person you’re seeking to positively influence. Get to know them. Find out what they want. This is all best accomplished by asking the right questions. Just make sure you’re asking these questions in a fun way and they don’t feel like they’re being interrogated. Be interested in what they have to say.
Then, when you discover their motivation to accomplish or do better at something that’s important to them, you can help them set higher goals for themselves. Encourage them to always do their best, and help them understand that everyone has a set of standards that they live by, and the best way to do better is to raise those personal standards and take action to maintain them.
Oh, and as a leader, parent, boss, etc., there’s something else you should know. Listen, you may be really good at something, or maybe you’ve worked really hard to be a certain way, and have therefore set your own high standards for how things should be in your home or workplace or wherever. Excellent! However, it’s very important to recognize that you can’t hold others to your standards. Everyone has their own experiences that have shaped them into who they are. We’re all on our own path of growth. Sometimes, we just need to recognize the differences we have, encourage other people’s growth, and have a little patience. Parents, you know exactly what I’m talking about! 🙂
Finally, remind them that nothing is ever perfect, but by taking control of what we’re willing or not willing to accept, we’re automatically making ourselves more powerful. And be sure to encourage them to stay the course, even when things don’t always go as planned or when things get difficult.
And speaking of which…
How To Maintain Your Standards Even When Things Get Tough
Let’s face it: There will be times when it’s tough to maintain your standards. Maybe you’re feeling stressed or overwhelmed, or maybe you’re just not feeling motivated, and you may find yourself being tempted to just lower you standards and go the easy route. But it’s important to remember that your standards are worth fighting for! And if you easily just give up when you’re challenged, you’re already compromising your standards, and that’s just not good.
Here are a few tips to help you maintain your standards when things get tough:
- Take a break. Sometimes, all you need is a break to clear your head and come back to your standards with fresh eyes.
- Talk to someone you trust. Sometimes, it can be helpful to talk to someone you trust about your standards. They can offer support and encouragement, and they can help you stay on track.
- Reward yourself. When you meet your standards, reward yourself with something you enjoy. This will help you stay motivated and keep your standards high.
The Lifestyle Equation: Standards + Action = Results
Listen, if you want to have the best results for yourself in your life, it all really comes down to this simple equation: Raise your STANDARDS. Take ACTION. And you’ll produce those RESULTS you want. Naturally, this assumes that you have the right vehicle (e.g. real estate) to produce those results.
Shoot, this just inspired me to come up with another “Tony” quote (which I’ll be adding to my list). Check this out…
“Low Standards Are the Benchmark of Mediocrity.“
-Tony Pearl
But think about it. It’s really that simple. Most people live mediocre lives, mainly because they’ve set low or average standards for themselves. That’s my theory & I’m stickin’ to it! Besides, doesn’t that quote sound good? Might have to put that in my next book! 😉
Oh, Before I Forget…
Let me just mention one other little thing here… When we say how important it is to raise your standards, it all starts with YOU. For example, if you have a low standard of just talking to one or two sellers every now and then, and think you’re going to do deals, that’s probably not going to cut it. Sure, it’s possible you might stumble into a deal, but it’s important to recognize that it’s not really probable. You see that, right? On the other hand, if your standard is to consistently talk to 5-10 new people a day (as I always say), then the chances of you doing deals just grew exponentially.
That’s a great example of setting a good, high standard and taking action. Do that consistently, and great results are sure to come. Make sense?
What Did We Just Talk About Again?
Let’s have a quick review. The main point I’m really looking to drive home here is: Your standards determine your lifestyle. If you want to live a fulfilling and successful life, you need to set high standards for yourself, demand them of others, and maintain those standards even when things get tough.
And in Conclusion…
Listen, I know you can do this. If you’ve read this far, I’m quite sure you have the drive, the determination, and the passion. So start right now by raising your personal standards. Expect MORE from yourself, work to make it happen, and then be amazed at the results you’re able to manifest – just by recognizing this simple fact, and starting with this simple act.
Remember that “Lifestyle Equation:” Standards + Action = Results.
To help you really and truly understand the importance of this concept, let me share something else with you. This time, we’re taking about the MOST important thing: Your HEALTH…
Here are some additional thoughts on how standards affect your lifestyle & your health:
- Your standards can affect your physical health. If you have high standards for your diet and exercise, you’re more likely to be healthy and fit. You’ll look and feel better & younger, have more energy, and feel more alive every day. If you have low physical health standards, you’ll probably feel like crap most of the time.
- Your standards can affect your mental health. If you have high standards for your mental well-being, you’re more likely to be happy and content. But if you don’t have those high standards, you’ll likely lean towards a very common problem in our society today: Mental illness, and may have things like depression, anxiety, stress, etc.). Those things can manifest themselves in dangerous ways.
- Your standards can affect your spiritual health. If you have high standards here, you’ll feel more connected to God, and have more peace & fulfillment in your life. If you have low or no standards here, you’re more likely to not have those vital things.
- Your standards can affect your financial health. If you have high standards for your finances, you’re more likely to be financially secure, not worry about money, and be happier because you’re able to go where you want, when you want, and with whom you want. If you have low financial standards for yourself, you’re just one small accident or emergency away from financial disaster.
In short, your standards can affect every aspect of your life. So it’s important to choose your standards wisely and to be committed to maintaining them.
Finally: To help you remember that all standards are relative, just keep this simple expression in mind:
“I Refuse to Lower MY Standards So You Can Raise YOURS!”
-Written on a funny T-Shirt I saw a woman wearing at a mall once.
I hope this article has inspired you to set higher standards for yourself and maintain those standards, even when things get tough. Remember, your standards determine your lifestyle.
So raise ’em up, and go out there and make your life amazing!
