Reaching for 100 percent.(Credit Column)

When I was a boy, my mother always told me to aim for 100 percent, with the likelihood that I'd get 75. I always questioned that advice, since I was never happy with 75 percent when I was--after all--striving for 100. That was only 10 points from just passing!

However, through the years I have found that her advice was much wiser than I realized at the time. She was not only giving me a lesson for that particular time, but a lesson for life--as we do not live in a perfect world: nothing is perfect. We live in an imperfect world.

That has not kept me from striving to achieve that 100 percent throughout my life. Following that, I have made it a point to be involved in anything that I believe will help me attain that 100 percent in my career. NACM is an example of that kind of involvement. Not only has my involvement with NACM enhanced and enriched my career, I believe that through NACM I have been able to assist others in their career goals, and contributed to the excellence of the organization itself.

I ask all of you to continue to be involved, to strive to improve yourself and our association: for it is through you--and your involvement--that we can continue to reach toward creating a more perfect world. Consider that if the world were perfect, we would have a somewhat boring existence. We would not have to strive to make anything better or invent better solutions.

Our imperfect world is a product of the diversity of thought and ideas in our population: everyone has their own idea of what a perfect world would be. This very fact makes it impossible to create a perfect world, as not everyone could ever agree on what exactly "perfect" is. As human beings, our ability to think freely and plan our own destiny creates the rich magnitude of thought in our society and in our world. This diversity--and the imperfection that is the result--motivates us to promote and defend our beliefs and even produces a competitive spirit between us. If everything were perfect, we would ...