Getting noticed in America requires excellence — what does that mean?

Many immigrants and first-gens work hard to get noticed, break out, and go from grinding to thriving. However, it is hard to know how to achieve this. People try to do the things they see others trying: networking, getting degrees, searching for mentors, switching jobs, etc.
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This process might feel fuzzy or unclear for many—particularly those who see certain tactics working for some people but not others. Many wonder: Why does it work for them but not for me?

America has explicit criteria for those who break out

In addition to defining what makes a person competitive (a topic for a future post), it is critical to understand who America allows to break out. Our nation wants to let those it considers “excellent” to succeed at a greater rate than others.
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It is worth noting that the term “excellence” gets thrown around a lot, though it is not defined explicitly. To be “excellent” in America means to reveal:

‍…consistent superiority of performance. The excellent athlete regularly, even routinely, performs better than his or her competitors. Consistency of superior performance tells us that one athlete is indeed better than another and that the difference between them is not merely a product of chance…By this definition, we need not judge performances against an absolute criterion, but only against other performances. [1]

America roots for people with a record of outperforming their peers

Think about who gets into the top universities in the U.S. Generally, it’s the freakishly remarkable—for instance, the math whiz who doubles as captain of the varsity basketball team and saves endangered species on weekends.

In this same vein, think about how Americans discuss which companies win in the marketplace. It’s typically those that are more agile and provide more value to the customer. These are all different ways of saying the country rewards people who consistently exhibit superior performance.

One caveat: Americans don’t want you to act like a jerk while you excel. Some may tolerate this as a byproduct of producing results, but it generally detracts from one’s success.

While the examples I used may seem daunting or unreachable, look at the end of the excerpt above:

…we need not judge performances against an absolute criterion, but only against other performances.

To break out in America, you don’t need to be the best globally. To break out, you need to outperform both yourself and your peers on a consistent basis.

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Immigrants and first-gens often use the wrong yardsticks for comparison

Many immigrants and first-gens grow up with a perfect/absolute external standard ingrained in them. Jettison this belief, and don’t compare your chapter 1 or chapter 2 to someone else’s chapter 20.
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Having this incorrect bar for comparison will prevent you from being able to accurately evaluate your true position.

This may cause you to focus on the wrong things at the wrong life or career stage. Be mindful of this in order to achieve your goals.

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Not excellent? Don’t expect great rewards

While for some the journey is its own reward, it is important to recognize that America does not give out rewards in a linear, symmetrical manner. The country disproportionately rewards those who are consistently excellent or outstanding.

Rewards in America are given out as follows [2]:

• Poor performance → no rewards
• Good performance → poor rewards
• Excellent performance → good rewards
• Outstanding performance → great rewards

If you are not excellent, be prepared for pain, frustration, and an uphill slog to get to a place where you feel like you thriving. [3]

Now that we have a definition of excellence, we must define what excellent performance looks like to Americans. I will cover this in part 2 of this series, so please stay tuned.

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By: Art Efremkin

Sources:
1 – The Mundanity of Excellence by Daniel Chambliss
2 – Unleash the Power Within by Tony Robbins
3 – David Ogilvy