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“Know this that every soul is free, 

To choose his life and what he’ll be…”

~William C. Gregg

The definition of mediocre is “of moderate or low quality, value, ability or performance” (Merriam Webster, 2019). For as long as I can remember, I have held a disdain for mediocrity. And for as long as I can remember, I have been condemned by classmates and friends for being a “high achiever”. I went to nursing school at the age of 35 because of a personal, traumatic experience with a family member. I was determined to learn as much as I could so that I could make a difference in somebody’s life as a nurse. I wanted to be the best nurse I could be, not the best nurse in the world. I was determined to be a nurse of excellence. I don’t know anybody who would want a nurse of “low quality, value, ability or performance” caring for them. And yet, I am condemned for wanting to be the best I can be. 

Most recently at the age of 45, a coworker told me that I needed to stop “trying so hard” at everything I do. My response to her was that I will not be mediocre. When I went back for a second graduate degree an acquaintance asked me sarcastically, “don’t you have enough degrees yet?”. My response is, I have the interest and ability, why shouldn’t I spend my time pursuing knowledge? When I approach something, whether it is a college course or a craft project, I want to do the very best work I can. I don’t want to do my best work so that I make other people look bad, or to gain all the glory. I didn’t pursue a graduate degree just to hang a certificate on my wall. I did it to be able to make a bigger impact in the short amount of time God gave me on this earth. I pursue excellence because God gave me the ability to do something and I want to share my ability with others. 

I pursue excellence because mediocrity is not the gift I want to share with others. 

Nursing is a service profession. As a nurse at the bedside, at a desk, or in the boardroom our work does not exist in a vacuum. Everything we do impacts another human being somehow. When another person reads an article you publish, it speaks to their soul. When you make a decision, it impacts other people. When you change a catheter, it affects another human body. There are no rules in life that say my pursuit of excellence outweighs my neighbors or should be compared to my neighbors. That is a man made assumption and bias. The pursuit of excellence by an individual should never be viewed in a negative light. Any excellence one nurse achieves contributes to, and is a reflection of, the profession as a whole.

We need to stop viewing ability as a competition and start viewing it as a gift. 

I believe that every human being has unlimited potential and should be able to experiment and pursue the abilities of their choosing, whether that be sport, art, skill, or intellect. I believe that it is our responsibility to discover, nurture, and use our abilities to make the world a better place for everyone. 

“Freedom and reason make us men
Take these away, what are we then? 
Mere animals, and just as well
The beasts may think of heav’n or hell”

~William C. Gregg