Good vs Good Enough: The surprising cost of settling for mediocrity

Today we’re going to tackle a topic that can be the downfall of many successful businesses—the shift from 'good' to 'good enough' as they grow.

We'll discuss why 'good enough' should be your starting point to launch something.

But then you’ve got to iterate like crazy to achieve greatness.

The problem is, most businesses start out good and then lean towards good enough.

It’s a dangerous path.

But how do you choose what’s ‘good’ and what’s ‘good enough’?

If you look inside my company without any context you’d be confused AF about what we accept and won't accept as good. 

We’re fast movers. Where things normally take months, we commonly get them done in weeks. 

- A cafe fit out in 3.5 weeks

- A new product to market in 2.

- An ingredient or process change in less. 

It means sometimes we need to accept ‘good enough’ for a moment in order to get it done quickly. 

And for a team of people with high standards, it can drive you a little mad seeing something that’s not up to scratch.

You’ve got to remind yourself that it’s just the launch. There’s plenty of time to polish it.

And that’s where our team thrives. 

We try to live by the line “If it ain’t broke, fix it” 

(Read that again)

It’s about deciding to improve things even when nobody’s asking. 

Deciding to lift your standards because YOU know you can. 

So how do you decide when to be ‘good enough’ vs ‘good’?

For that, let’s rewind a little…

When you start out and have high standards, it’s easy to fuss over every detail until it’s near perfect. 

It sometimes causes you to not launch at all. 

And when you finally do, it's really hard to scale because you’re terrified of compromising.

I've been in this exact headspace before.

And then there's the flip side.

The side where as your business grows, you fall into the trap of accepting mediocrity.

Thinking that 'good enough' is fine because you’re growing and people want what you sell.

It gets more tempting when you’re faced with tight budgets, resource constraints, and the pressure to scale quickly. 

But when 'good enough' becomes your standard, you risk losing the qualities that made your business exceptional in the first place.

Customer satisfaction may start to decline, innovation may stagnate, and your competitive edge is lost.

It opens the door to competitors to steal your customers and your team if they have higher standards.

Instead of allowing your business to slip into the 'good enough' mindset, consider adopting the continuous iteration process. 

Push for excellence!

Here's why this approach is vital for long-term success:

Customer Loyalty: Hitting everything with excellence in mind means your customers receive the best possible experience. 

It turns them into raving fans who act as your own private marketing army that propels your company forward in the market without a massive marketing budget.

Differentiation: Being excellent sets you apart from competitors.  

It gives you a unique selling point that can attract customers who are seeking top-notch quality. 

Those customers are often the best to deal with and become your biggest supporters.

Innovation: Excellence breeds innovation. 

When you aim for the highest standards, you’re more likely to push the boundaries of what's possible and find creative solutions to problems.

In our case, it’s led to new products, fixes to processes, new business ideas and even attracted high level employees.

Brand Reputation: An excellent reputation is hard to build but easy to lose. 

'Good enough' can destroy your brand's image.

Excellence enhances it.

But let's get real for a second... 

Starting with excellence doesn't mean you have to be perfect from the outset.

The key is to iterate.

The Iteration Process

We do just about anything to get a product into the market fast if the timing is right.

It’s never perfect first go but it certainly isn’t shit because we have high standards and a great team. 

But are we happy with it? 

Not really… 

So we iterate like crazy to make it better after we launch it. 

The good news is that only a fraction of your client base is paying attention to what you do. 

(Even though it feels like everyone is inspecting your failures.)

The reality is that only a handful of people are paying attention and it’s rare that they will say anything if they know you're the type of company who is pushing to be great.

So launch something good enough and then embrace feedback, adapt to changes in the market, and refine your processes to make it really damn good.

Remember, you iterate to get to excellence. You don’t launch with it.

Here're some practical steps to take.

Define Your Standards:

Clearly articulate what 'excellence' means for your business.

Establish specific metrics or find other benchmarks to measure against.

Invest in Training:

People talk about it but don’t actually do this bit.  

But make sure your team is well-trained and equipped to meet those standards.  

Education and development are critical.

Feedback Loop:

Create a feedback loop with your key customers, employees, and stakeholders. 

Listen to their insights, concerns, and suggestions for improvement.

Stay Agile:

Be flexible and willing to adapt. 

Don't be afraid to pivot or change course if it means achieving a higher level of excellence.

This is the bit about improving things even though no one’s asking.

We've covered a lot today. so let’s wrap up here…

In today’s world of business, 'good enough' should be a starting point, not a destination.

Really freaking “Good’ is where you’re aiming. 

So get a product live, then iterate rapidly with excellence in mind. 

Do this at scale and you’ve got a winning formula in a world where nearly everyone else is looking for shortcuts that are ‘good enough’

I hope it helps!