There's a man in the world who is never turned down, wherever he chances to stray; he gets the glad hand in the populous town, or out where the farmers make hay; he's greeted with pleasure on deserts of sand, and deep in the aisles of the woods; wherever he goes there's the welcoming hand--he's The Man Who Delivers the Goods. The failures of life sit around and complain; the gods haven't treated them white; they've lost their umbrellas whenever there's rain, and they haven't their lanterns at night; men tire of the failures who fill with their sighs the air of their own neighborhoods; there's one who is greeted with love-lighted eyes--he's The Man Who Delivers the Goods. One fellow is lazy, and watches the clock, and waits for the whistle to blow; and one has a hammer, with which he will knock, and one tells a story of woe; and one, if requested to travel a mile, will measure the perches and roods; but one does his stunt with a whistle or smile--he's The Man Who Delivers the Goods. One man is afraid that he'll labor too hard--the world isn't yearning for such; and one man is always alert, on his guard, lest he put in a minute too much; and one has a grouch or a temper that's bad, and one is a creature of moods; so it's hey for the joyous and rollicking lad--for the One Who Delivers the Goods! Walt Mason, his book (1916)
December 19, 2012 — For a long time I've believed that underpromising and overdelivering is a trait of successful businesses and people. So the past year I've been trying to overdeliver.
But lately I realized that you cannot try to overdeliver. All an individual can do is deliver, deliver, deliver. Delivering is a habit that you get into. Delivering is something you can do.
Overdelivering is only something a team can do. The only way to overdeliver, is for a team of people to constantly deliver things to each other, and then the group constantly delivers something to other people that that person could never imagine doing alone.
But in your role on a team, the key isn't to worry about overdelivering, just get in the habit of delivering.
Be the One who delivers the goods!