Have you ever bemoaned the fact that you weren’t the “best”? Have you ever felt a twinge of guilt, anger, or jealousy for just being “average”?
NEWS FLASH: the majority of people you know and interact with every single day are “average”… and the majority of people are pretty awesome!
In order to function properly, our world and our society depend on millions and millions of average people doing average jobs and living average lives.
Have you ever thought of it that way before?
As you can see by the rudimentary graph above, only 20% of people fall into the “high performers” categories — and while it would be fun for all of us to land in that elite group, it’s just not possible!
After all, in order for some individuals to be considered “above average” a whole bunch of us need to be parked in the “average” camp.
You know I’m right!
Growing up, my mom affectionately referred to me as a “Jill of All Trades, Master of None” because I was interested and involved in such a wide variety of activities that I never had a chance to get really really good at any of them.
I was just average at a whole bunch of things.
I took her words as a compliment at the time, and I still catch myself smiling whenever I hear someone mention a “Jack Of All Trades” because it reminds me that “average is awesome”, and I love having a wide range of interests, hobbies, talents, and skills.
No, I’m not the best at anything.
I’m not an expert in anything.
I’m not a trend-setter, a guru, a master, a specialist, a pro, an icon, a whiz, a brainiac, a superstar, a genius, or anyone famous for anything.
I’m just plain old average… and it’s pretty awesome!!
Let me give you a few examples of my averageness…
I took piano lessons for years and still play today. I’m a competent pianist and use my gifts for the Sunday School and Children Choir at church… but I’ll never be exceptional or over-the-top amazing because I’m not willing to put that amount of effort into practicing.
I took sewing lessons until I was good enough to alter clothing, follow a pattern, and sew items that made sense for my lifestyle (pillows, blankets, curtains, etc.) I use my sewing machine almost every week, but I’ll never be a professional seamstress or do anything more than sew for my own home and family.
I enjoy cooking and baking and trying new recipes. My family and our friends think my food tastes pretty good, but I will never be a master chef, and that’s OK
I love writing and I’ve improved SO much over the last decade, but I’m far from polished or witty and I don’t have the patience to even consider writing an actual book, let alone be known as a “great author”.
I run a “successful business”, in the sense that I love what I do and make enough money to warrant the time I spend, but I am not one of the many bloggers who can brag about their multiple 6-figure incomes. I guess it’s more like a money-making hobby.
Yup… being average is awesome and it suits me just fine!
If you’re above average at anything, good for you! Seriously — way to go!
We need you 20% above-average, over-achieving, high-performers to look up to and aspire to be like.
However, you really should give all of us average people a teeny-tiny bit of the credit, because our willingness to continue living blissfully as average citizens plays a small role in your ability to become better than average! 🙂
Ok, I’m joking… sort of!
The point I want to make is that average (or even below average) is not bad.
“Average is awesome!”
I often see the quote: “I’m not here to be average. I’m here to be awesome.” floating around the internet — usually by individuals who are aspiring to reach a big goal.
I LOVE that kind of drive and determination and at times in my life, I’ve had it too.
But my question is… Can’t we be BOTH?
YES, I think we can!
Just consider how radically different our lives would be if we didn’t have a massive amount of average people in them.
- Who would bag our groceries?
- Who would get our coffee order just right?
- Who would greet us with a smile at the front desk of our office building?
- Who would help schedule our doctor’s appointments or administer our flu shots?
- Who would teach, coach, instruct, and babysit our children?
- Who would bring a dish to pass and play all the silly games at our holiday parties?
- Who would fix our furnace at 6 am on one of the coldest days of the year?
- Who would care for our elderly relatives in the local nursing home?
- Who would deliver meals after a major surgery, a new baby, or the death of a loved one?
The Answer…
A whole bunch of really awesome average people working average jobs and living average lives.
Celebrate and look up to the overachievers in your life.
Continue learning and trying new things every day.
Get excited about reaching for and achieving new goals.
But in the meantime, make sure you realize all the benefits and joy that come from being average.
Today (and every day) I encourage you to relish in your awesome averageness.
You’ll probably never win the lottery or be a multi-millionaire… neither will the vast majority of people.
You’ll most likely never be famous for anything… but would you really want that lifestyle anyway?
You might not have huge life goals… but I guarantee you’re making a difference within your own spheres every day.
You’ll most likely never be the head of a Fortune 500 company… whew, enjoy less stress and busyness.
You might never be a trend-setter or a big-name “influencer”… just think how much time, money, and frustration you’ll save by following in others’ footsteps instead of paving your own way.
Being average is awesome too… don’t let anyone tell you anything different!
Drew says
I love this! I always say that I am SUPER average!! ♀️
Jean says
Some of us have tortured ourselves at times trying to be exceptional. I love that average is awesome. And as an older adult, I see that living a simple life is awesome. Andrea, you are awesome!
Jean says
Some of us have tortured ourselves at times trying to be exceptional. I love that average is awesome. And as an older adult, I see that being living a simple life is awesome. Andrea, you are awesome!
Guisela says
Excellent post!!! And, did you realize that average people where heroes during the pandemic? So, even us, average people could save lives (literal and figuratively speaking)
Donna Marie says
I think any women who has 4 children and a blog, who cooks, cleans and does what you do cannot be considered average!!! Just sayin’.
Linda K Foster says
Wow! Thanks for the encouragement!! Excellent post. I needed to hear. Thank You Andrea!
Andrea says
you’re welcome!
Wendy says
Andrea, this is so true.
Sue says
This is so utterly TRUE and so needed in this day and age!! I believe it’s the reason, in our social media age, that businesses have a hard time finding employees. We have a generation of “Living My Best Life”-ers out there. And while it’s important to have goals, it’s also important to be a cog in the wheel and a team player. I always tell my girls, that if there was no “rain” , you wouldn’t appreciate the “sunshine” in life! Just like you were saying with average giving light to above average. I’m no expert at anything, but I feel I’m pretty good at some things. Some people waste their life trying to find what they are ‘BEST’ at!
Andrea says
YES! Maybe we should not be the Millenials, but instead, the “Living My Best Lifer-ers” 🙂
Goals are good… but we also need to know when enough is enough and just be happy and satisfied and content with what we have!
Sue says
You got it !!!!!!!!!!! Don’t worry about James and Clara. I so hate this 10% this and that.. My kids have always been ABOVE average on height and weight 90%. Believe me it is not great on this end of the spectrum. And why do people always stick on that? ” You know your daughter is really tall?” Yes she knows.Your daughter is only 13? I thought she was 16. ( don’t get me started on that one )
Sue in NJ
Andrea says
thanks — and I’m honestly not worried about James and Clara! It was a good point for this post though — and I couldn’t resist Clara’s cute Dr. office picture!
Pascale says
I admire how much you get done in a day and how baby steps help you achieve much larger goals. Gifted people may have 96% in English and 8% in math so they’re not above average in everything. They will get discouraged if they cannot do something perfectly and will drop it and move on to something else. They get bored very easily. They’re also overly sensitive which can pose a problem. All of this to say that giftedness is not always easy for the gifted child, teen or adult and for the parents or spouse living with that person.
Andrea says
thanks for sharing — you are correct and bring up a very good point!
Kerri says
I think we can be both. I am “just” a pediatric private duty nurse but to my work baby and her family, they think I’m pretty awesome.
Brenda says
Growing up I always thought my older sister was just naturally good at everything she did. Then finally she told me the secret. She doesn’t do anything she’s not (usually naturally) good at. If she tried something and it seemed awkward or difficult and she didn’t enjoy it, she stopped doing it. If she enjoyed it, she put in the effort to become good at it. This totally blew my mind. If you only do what you are easily good at you look like you’re good at everything. I still think of this when I think other people seem to be able to do it all so easily.
Andrea says
honestly, this is sort of how I feel too! If I’m pretty good at something and I like it, I’ll pursue it. If I’m not very good, I won’t waste my time or energy doing more of it!
JJ says
When my grandma passed away and many had loving things to say, it really hit me. When we die, it’s not our accomplishments that are praised as much as how well we loved others and how we positively affected their lives. Your post is AWESOME!!! And above average, in my opinion!!! It really encouraged me!!!
Andrea says
yes, exactly!
Diana says
Love this 🙂 One thing to add: people who do those “average” jobs with an above-average diligence and cheerfulness are some of the best people on the planet 🙂
Andrea says
oh yes — definitely! So True!
Kim says
Thank you for this! More people need to take this message to heart. (And I would definitely place you in the above average group. )
Andrea says
well thanks Kim 🙂
Rhonda says
Hi Andrea, if you like listening to Podcasts (on Pandora), one I listened to last week touched on the subject of this blog post. Check out This American Life, Nov 10 2019 episode 687 “Small Things Considered”.
I’m like you – I like doing a lot of different things. I attribute it to my upbringing in a small school and tiny town. A lot of kids had to be involved in several activities, or else we might not have enough for “X” sport, club, group, etc. And because there weren’t so many kids to compete with, everyone had the opportunity to do something, or often many things. I consider it to be one advantage of small town life (even though we might not have all that “big city life” offers).
Andrea says
Thanks for the podcast suggestion!
Jen says
Love this! And, I think we are all “above average”, “average”, and “below average” at different things at different times in life, which is a great reminder that God made and gifted us all differently so we could all contribute in different ways!
I had three kiddos who were way “below average” in height/weight if you’re looking at the “charts”. In fact, my boys, who weighed 9.0 pounds and 9.11 ounces at birth, only weighed 18 and 21 pounds respectively at 1 year old! Today, they are 6.2″ and 6.3″–they turned out just fine and so will James and Clara! Healthy and happy are a lot more important that “average” and “growth charts”!
Happy Monday!
Andrea says
yes, I totally agree with this. I almost mentioned something about this in the post, but it was already getting long 🙂
And yes, I’m not too concerned about James and Clara. They are healthy and growing well. Just small!
Amy Owen says
I love this!
Kim says
Great reminders!
It occurs to me that James and Clara are exactly the size their Creator has chosen them to be and He does way above average design work! Just sayin’.
Andrea says
yes, you’re right. Thanks Kim 🙂