There are two components to building strength by raising the bar: (a) Choose the right exemplars—ones that raise your standards. Exemplars can be people you work with, people you admire, or even people who lived long ago. It doesn’t matter. What matters is they make you better in a certain area, like a skill, trait, or value. (b) Practice imitating them in certain ways. Create space in the moment to reflect on what they’d do in your position, and then act accordingly.
