The exact translation of this quote is in dispute; in the original French, it was "Le mieux est l'ennemi du bien," which can also translate to "The best is the enemy of the good." I have read some comments about its meaning as a call to arms against mediocrity - which I heartily endorse - but I have found the first translation to be more helpful and more meaningful in my work and in my life.
I read the quote originally in a short article on environmentalism. The author, Laurie David, wrote that the goal of being perfectly green kept untold numbers of people from trying any environmental preservation efforts at all. Since they were unable to give up their homes in the suburbs and the cars they needed to get around, people assumed that their small efforts to bring reusable bags to the store or to hang laundry on the line would be useless. Never mind that the collective small efforts of many people can make a big difference. Never mind that it is good for everyone to feel and take some responsibility to make the world a better place. It is not perfect, but it is good.
In striving to create inclusive communities, I believe that perfection is the enemy, particularly if we are so busy worrying about "getting it right" that we don't make efforts to get it going at all. An example from my work this week - it is the beginning of winter sports season and several of my students and former students tried out for sports teams. Only one young man made the team he tried out for, because there were eight slots on the team and he was one of eight players that tried out. The other two did not, because there were more capable players than there were places on the team.
In a perfect world, everyone who tried out and wanted to play could play. In a perfect world, everyone would have a real role on the team. But this isn't a perfect world- as a matter of fact, it's high school...
Perfect? No. Good? I think so.
My students, the coaches, and I felt that the boys deserved a chance to try out like everyone else. If they made the teams fair and square, good. If they didn't make the team, the same happened to many of their peers. Maybe they will choose to work as managers on the team, maybe they will try again next year, or maybe not. What is important is that they had the same chance as anyone else to join in high school sports.
And I can tell you, this attitude would not have existed 20 years ago. Even allowing a try-out would have been unthinkable. We all would have been afraid that the kids would have been injured or terribly discouraged by not making the team. We would have been caught in the trap of perfection, too afraid to try for good, because good might not have been good enough.
The coaches were worried - they are sensitive to the feelings of their potential players. I assured them that giving the kids the chance was good enough. The chance to manage the team? Even better. It's up to the kids what good they wish to make of this; they need to decide what is good for them.
We didn't have 2.4 children - but the families we have, with all their flaws, are very good.
We didn't get the corner office - but the job has a lot of good in it.
We didn't get into the best college - but our college was good, in spite of (because of?) its faults.
Our lives aren't perfect, but they are deeply good.
When we are over-focused on perfection, we miss the good that surrounds us.
Perfect is only the surface; good goes all the way down.
Also by Voltaire...Aime la vérité, mais pardonne à l'erreur.
Love truth, but pardon error.
Sometimes, good is better than we give it credit for...
No comments:
Post a Comment