The value of consistency
Paul White's nationally distributed syndicated column, “The value of consistency” is published in 22 publications across seven states. This includes the following newspapers and digital publications: Midland Daily News (MI), SFGate (CA), Seattle PI (WA), Connecticut Post (CT), Laredo Morning Times (TX), Huron Daily Tribune (MI), The Telegraph (IL), and more. In this article, Paul explores the value of consistency and how exercising this important life tool can improve your life and bring you and those around you consistent joy and happiness.
I was recently thinking about the people that I greatly admire. I’d hop from individual to individual, diving deep into the “why” reasoning that led me to admiring them so much.
First of all, this time spent joyfully meditating on the goodness of others was precious. It seems rare these days that any of us take time to push the negative daily drama off to the side and allow ourselves to focus on something so good. The value of doing this is so powerful that I have failed to come up with an answer as to why all of us don’t make this a daily habit.
Second, upon deep analysis, I realized that each person was unique in how they had earned my admiration with a mixture of the character qualities they possessed. This led to me analyzing the third step in the “why” reasoning which turned out to be seeking character qualities that each of them shared with the others.
It’s interesting that the single character trait that stood out the most was consistency. While I admired different character traits in each individual, what I admired most is that they had exhibited their unique character traits over a long period of time. In the business world, nonprofit world, the parenting world, faith communities, athletic world, political world, and in our daily lives we’ve all experienced what I call “flash-in-the-pan” moments where someone is recognized for doing something extraordinary but then never do it again. Why? Well, probably because it was really hard. Typically, doing great things that help other people takes a lot of drive, fortitude, effort and commitment. Here’s a profound statement: Commitment provides the only path to consistency.
I’ve seen data showing that young people today really want to make a difference in the world and are quick to sign up for single events where they can volunteer for a couple of hours, experience the rush of feel-good serotonin and celebrate how awesome they are for another six months or more before helping out again. They miss out on what they are truly capable of and I can’t figure out why they don’t want to feel that way on a more consistent basis. I would never suggest that any positive effort is wasted and I’m grateful for each and every effort someone puts forth to help others. Please don’t misinterpret where I’m going with this. I tend to believe that every person has incredible potential that is unique to them, and I want to spend my life encouraging people to believe in what they’re capable of and put those capabilities to consistent use in providing themselves with consistent joy. Joy is experienced most through consistency of behavior and character.
Roger Maris set a Major League Baseball single-season home run record with 61 home runs in 1961. He held that record until 1998 and yet has never been voted into the MLB Hall of Fame. Why? Lack of consistency. The other 11 years he played MLB, he averaged less than 20 home runs per year. My guess is that Roger would’ve been voted into that Hall of Fame when he first became eligible if he would have consistently averaged over 40 home runs those other 11 years. This offers proof that consistency is highly valued in our society.
Our oldest son pulled a fast one on his mom, dad and three brothers the day we took him to begin his freshman year at a college two hours away. As we were about to pull out of our driveway, he asked us to stop telling us he had forgotten something inside. He ran inside while the rest of us stayed in the vehicle and returned in a couple of minutes. We arrived and helped him settle in his dorm room and said our goodbyes. Less than five minutes into our journey back home, our son calls my phone and informs us that each of us have a letter under our pillow waiting for us when we returned home (longest two-hour ride ever). I have mine taped on a wall next to my desk and I can read it as I’m writing this. It’s really that important.
Here’s a little of what he wrote: “I told this to Mom too, but thank you for always being so consistent. What I mean by that is that you’ve always been consistent in your morals, parenting and faith and for me that is something that is very admirable and also something I hope to do for my kids someday.” His letter had a powerful impact on why I value consistency so very much. It offers proof that consistency is highly valued by individuals.
Any successful leader of a faith community embraces the value of consistency over a long period of time. It’s consistency of message and expectations that allows a shepherd to lead the flock as time moves forward. It’s the same with leaders in business, the nonprofit world, families, with coaches, and politicians. We can thrive to the best of our ability once we lock onto a consistent message and have ongoing consistent support for that message. This thought process seems so simple but most of us make it complex by only being willing to commit to anything on a temporary basis. Consistency doesn’t stand a chance when we keep changing the message. One can’t build a life on top of an ever-changing foundation.
Fact is, we all admire leaders that are consistent. Consistency grows trust. Inconsistency grows confusion and destroys trust. Are you in a position of leadership? If you’re a parent, older sibling, coach, co-worker, community member, or a human being on this planet, then you are! Someone on this planet will be impacted, in some way, by your actions (or lack of action) today. If you want the impact you have on the world to be positive, are your actions moving in a direction that shows consistency? As a society, we respond favorably to consistency.
Now, here’s what I want you to do. Free up a little time and think about the people you admire. Write their names down on a sheet of paper. Next write down their character traits that have led you to admire them. While each person you admire will have a unique list, there may be some shared traits with others on your list. Now, look at each person’s specific character traits and analyze the role that consistency has played. Whether you’ve realized it before or not, consistency of specific character traits is what led you to the admiration you have.
Here’s the big finish…. What have YOU been consistent with in your life?
Has that consistency led to others having admiration for YOU? Have you been able to establish trust with others based on living each day with a consistency-based set of character traits? Why should you do this exercise right now? BECAUSE YOU ARE WORTH EMBRACING THIS SIMPLE PROCESS!
And, Because I Believe in YOU! Now, GiddyUp!
In addition to being a nationally syndicated columnist, Paul White is an author, motivational and inspirational speaker, entrepreneur, podcaster, and life coach located in Midland, Michigan. He offers self-help and culture development to start your journey towards consistent growth and joy. If you’re interested in getting in touch with Paul, please submit an inquiry via our Contact Page.