Hey, Success Pursuer, here are a few questions for you:

1. What standards for work and behaviour do you set for yourself when it comes to honesty, ethics, work, punctuality, dependability, productivity, etc.?
2. Are these standards high enough?
3. Do you live these standards, or are you one who says, “Do as I say, don’t do as I do.”?
4. Are your expectations of yourself the same as your expectations of others?
5. If your family and the folk in your workplace adopted your actual lived standards and followed your example in all the abovementioned areas, what kind of a family life would you have? Would it be a happy one? And would your workplace be a happy and productive place?

If, in answer to the last question, you realize that following your example in your family or workplace would not result in the happiness and productivity you yourself are seeking, then change is in order. In fact, change is absolutely required, if you’re serious about wanting to see career advancement, workplace prosperity, and family happiness.

I have found that expecting little from oneself produces little for oneself, and that expecting more from others than you do from yourself is an equally dead-end street. In other words, the success you are pursuing will continue to elude you, and you will fail in your career, business, workplace, marriage, and your faith-walk with the Lord, unless you set high standards for yourself—standards you are determined to meet in spite of setbacks and difficulties.

How do you know whether your standards are the right ones? That’s an easy one; it’s where the fifth question above comes in. Just ask yourself: If my family and co-workers adopted my standards and poured the same degree of effort and the same kind of attitudes into their goals that I pour into mine, would their happiness and prosperity be enhanced? If the answer to this is a resounding YES, then your standards are worth keeping. Continue to strive to meet them. If the answer is NO, then you need to raise your standards, or start seriously aiming for them if you haven’t been doing so. When you do, you’ll find yourself well on the way to God-honouring success in any endeavour you want to pour your talents and energy into.

Remember: your actions and your words should always agree. The standard you profess should be the standard you actually strive to meet each day. Let your example be worthy of following.

Let your actions prove that you’re committed to living life on a new level.
Raise your standards and aim for greatness. —Author Unknown

The quality of a leader is reflected in the standards they set for themselves.
—Roy Kroc (builder of the McDonalds empire)

Refuse to lower your standards to accommodate those who refuse to raise theirs.
—Mandy Hale (Author)

The Lord detests double standards of every kind.    —Proverbs 20:10