Perfection is not attainable, but if we chase perfection we can catch excellence.

Vince Lombardi (1913–1970), the celebrated head coach of the Green Bay Packers, became a national symbol of rigorous preparation and uncompromising standards during the NFL’s rise in the 1960s. The line is widely circulated as a distillation of his coaching philosophy: set goals beyond reach to force continual improvement, discipline, and attention to detail. Although commonly presented as something Lombardi “said,” it is most often encountered in later compilations of Lombardi sayings and motivational literature rather than in a clearly citable contemporaneous speech transcript or dated interview. As a result, the sentiment fits Lombardi’s public persona, but the exact wording is difficult to anchor to a single primary occasion.

The quote argues that perfection is an asymptote: impossible to achieve, yet valuable as a guiding ideal. By “chasing perfection,” individuals or teams adopt higher standards than mere adequacy, which in turn elevates performance to “excellence.” The statement reframes failure to reach perfection not as defeat but as a productive outcome—ambitious striving yields tangible gains even when the ultimate target remains unattainable. In leadership terms, it endorses demanding goals and relentless refinement while implicitly warning against complacency. It also suggests a pragmatic ethic: perfection is not the metric of success; the disciplined pursuit of it is what produces superior results.