Being Good Enough at Work Leaves Room for What Matters More
A former consultant skipped the promotion track to write, and found that good enough is a strategy for the right season.
The Minimalists · 561 | Good at LifeBen Meer, author of How to Be Good at Life, decided to be average at his consulting job so he could put more time and energy into writing, the thing that gave him more energy.
In 2019, Meer was the last person working late on the 42nd floor in a New York high-rise, finishing slides that would soon be forgotten. At the time, he was aiming for the next promotion at a high-powered consulting firm.
When the pandemic forced a pause, he realized he wanted a more creative life as a writer. As he put it, “I purposely decided to be average at my job to not go after that promotion so I could allocate more of my time and energy into this thing that was giving me more energy.”
By average, Meer said he did not mean letting teammates down, mailing it in, or quietly quitting. He did good work, but he stopped taking on duties outside his role and stopped chasing a promotion he felt did not justify the cost.
The hard part came months later, when his review rated him middle of the pack. That stung his identity as a high performer, until his fiancee, Jade, reminded him that this was exactly the plan. About a year later, the writing time had built a path out to work that gave him more energy.
T.K. Coleman, speaking with Meer, argues that this choice starts with defining what counts as enough, so people do not keep shifting the goalposts. He urges an inventory of whether the work still brings happiness, and whether it is shaping the person they want to become.
Meer adds that the answer depends on the season of life, because trying to grow in every area at once can be very challenging. A young parent, he said, may reasonably stay good enough at work to lean into family, just as someone focused on a career may reasonably push harder there for a time.
Questions people ask
Won't deliberately being average put my job at risk?
Meer said being average did not mean letting teammates down, mailing it in, or quietly quitting. He did good work in his role, but took on no extra duties outside his scope and stopped chasing a promotion that did not pay enough to justify it. His fiancee, Jade, later reminded him he had chosen to do a good enough job there to free up time and energy for writing.
How do I figure out what enough looks like for me?
Start with living costs and what the extra money or title would actually change. Coleman suggests asking whether you are happy with what you have gained, and who you are becoming in the process.
How do I explain stepping back without sounding checked out?
Frame it as focus rather than withdrawal, and keep output strong. Coleman suggests presenting a narrower set of priorities as concentrated energy on what matters most.