Copy not the style but standard

It is human nature to admire those that are successful. We quickly wish we were equally successful. The immediate temptation may be to copy and paste what we admire. But that is often wrong.

We should not copy the style or content of those that excel. Rather, we need to admire the standard of brilliance and then apply that to our individual situation or circumstances.

If we attempt to copy the exact style of the successful person that we admire, we may not accurately replicate that. Chances are that we will fail and so we will be disappointed and frustrated.

The person we try to copy and emulate may have unique talents, personality type and qualities that are particularly needed to conduct in the way that helps him or her to be successful. If we do not have some or all of these attributes, then it may be very difficult to copy or emulate them successfully.

In fact, we should not copy the style and also not the field or area that one excels in. We need to admire the success of other people and then look at ourselves to identify the best area in which we can also excel. If we want to copy the style, we may be forced to copy also the field in which the role model excels. That too is wrong.

By copying the standard, we will have the flexibility to identify the best suitable field in which we can excel. We all have unique talents and personality types. We have different likes and passions.

If you can fully identify your unique package of talents, personality type, likes and passions then use that to determine the course of life that you should embark on and work to stand out, you stand a good chance of excelling.

This is where you copy the standard and not the style. Once you have the standard in mind, you will work out your own style based on your unique package of the attributes we have listed above.

Mwai Kumwenda is an outstanding netballer – one of the top best that Malawi has had in the field of netball. She has made big headlines recently with her nomination for the Athlete of the Month. At 26 years, she was awarded the Player of the Tournament for the Netball World Cub Sydney 2015. Her shooting accuracy was 91 percent, having scored 321 times in eight games.

For a young girl out there in primary or secondary school, it may make some sense to dream to become a great netballer like Mwai one day, and to work hard towards that goal.

But that can only make sense if you are a girl and with the package of attributes that fit netball—talent in netball, passion for netball, ability to be coached in netball, readiness to work on physical fitness and so on. Otherwise, for boys and older people, what we can learn and admire from Mwai is the standard of achievement.

Relate this to your personal field, the area in which you are talented, the field in which you ply your trade and the profession in which you have passion. Translate Mwai’s success to that particular situation of yours and build a plan to also achieve as great as Mwa, but in your field, using your style.

When we say let us copy the standard of Mwai’s success, we are not just referring to the size or measure of the greatness of her success, but also the general inputs that make her that successful.

These inputs will be things like working hard, listening to those that coach or teach you, the attitude, team work and so on. Those are professional standards for inputs that make it possible to win and become so successful. We can copy and adapt those standards.

We now know that what matters for emulating the success of those that we admire is not copying their style or content.

Rather, we need to copy the standard of achievement and the standard of the inputs that make it possible to be so successful. Good luck as you rise and shine this way! n