110 PERCENT

It is possible to operate at 110 percent for a short period of time.

We generally think of 100 percent as the maximum of any given standard. One hundred percent means "everything." How can something be more than "everything"?

In some cases, 100 percent does mean "everything." In these cases, the maximum standard is 100 percent, and more than 100 percent cannot be achieved. For example, I cannot make a cash donation to a charity right now that is greater than 100 percent of the cash I have on me.

Of course, I can make a pledge to give more than 100 percent of the cash I have on me. This pledge may be many times that 100 percent standard. By redefining the standard, we can enlarge it. If the standard is the amount of cash I have on me, 100 percent is a relatively small amount. If the standard is the amount I can pledge now and pay later, then 100 percent is a much larger amount.

Redefining the standard is only one way to exceed 100 percent of a standard. Most standards involve the maximum that can be sustained over time. For example, all sports cars have a "red line" on their tachometer that defines the maximum revolutions per minute that the engine can sustain without burning out. If the engine revolves faster than that standard for more than a short time, the engine will "seize" and require extensive repairs. But what happens if the engine exceeds that 100 percent standard for a few seconds? The tachometer needle passes the red line, the car goes faster, and NOTHING else! One hundred percent of a standard like that can be exceeded for a short period of time with no significant damage.

The same is true when the standard involves how hard I can work to fulfill my responsibilities. There is a level of hard work that will cause me to "burn out" if I sustain that level for an extended period. Let's call that level of work 100 percent of my capacity for work. I cannot exceed that level of work for long without causing significant damage to myself either physically, psychologically, or both.

When I need to, I can exceed that 100 percent standard for a period of time. Emergencies happen. Resolving an emergency may require me - or you - to give 110 percent. I can do it and so can you as long as that level of work is required only for a short period of time.

In exceptional situations, a person can actually accomplish 200 percent or even 1,000 per cent of his normal capacity for a very short period of time. A father who sees his child trapped under a fallen refrigerator may lift that refrigerator off the child without thinking. Under normal circumstances, this is totally impossible. Saving my child's life is far from a normal circumstance to me, and I will do whatever it takes right here and now to accomplish that goal. I will leave contemplation of my limited capacity for another time and place.