Did you go after that promotion, or that certification, or that special assignment just because you felt you needed to keep up with the raised bar?
Phelps's eight gold medals in Beijing also raised the bar a bit for everyone.
Well, it seems that the FBI just raised the bar on the ROI concept.
FORBES: The FBI Creates The Most Effective Commercial Of The Year
It has raised the bar for staging responsible, if not yet truly sustainable, international events.
This week, the government raised the bar even higher, to an average 54. 5 mpg by 2025.
FORBES: 10 Ways Automakers Are Helping You Spend Less On Gasoline
When they raised the bar, Tennessee went from 91 percent of children proficient in math to 34 percent.
In 2002 he raised the bar again, promising to boost worldwide sales by 1 million vehicles in three years.
FORBES: Nissan readies a big rollout of new cars and trucks.
The ninth generation has raised the bar over Accords past by ironing out discrepancies to become a more comprehensive sedan.
The judges were instructed to vote for the vehicles that raised the bar or set new benchmarks in their segments.
FORBES: Cadillac ATS, Ram 1500 Take Car, Truck of the Year Awards
And if Mr Brown's failure to call a snap election hurt him politically, it also raised the bar for Mr Cameron.
ECONOMIST: The Conservatives are doing well, but not well enough
"Sony engineers have raised the bar once again" said Mike Abary, senior vice president of the VAIO business group at Sony.
So the fact that Amazon raised the bar with updates to the Kindle's software feature set is just gravy on the cake.
The younger Collins is taking over a program that raised the bar in recent years, but couldn't quite reach the NCAA tournament.
The industry's reporting standards may never become that conservative, but there is no doubt that Enron's demise has already raised the bar.
Similarly, In-N-Out Burger and Fuddruckers have also raised the bar for the burger industry, winning legions of loyal customers with their premium, gourmet offerings.
FORBES: Five Guys Voted America's Favorite Burger Chain, McDonald's Trails Near Bottom
The Supreme Court in April raised the bar for receiving a patent, which could also have the effect of reducing the number of patent lawsuits.
Egged on by Mr Ocalan, the BDP has raised the bar with a civil-disobedience campaign that has seen a Kurdish female parliamentarian slap a policeman.
Previous changes to school inspections had "raised the bar" because the country had higher expectations and standards appeared to drop when a new framework was introduced.
"You want to raise the bar so that kids have a new understanding of what's possible, and I think this experience has raised that bar, " she said.
WSJ: School Club's Success Cheers Poker's 'Mind Sport' Champions
Experts say ambitious executives should pay closer attention to fixing flaws because businesses, after trimming leadership-development efforts during the downturn, have lately raised the bar on management performance.
Tennessee, when they raised the bar, their achievement gaps doubled.
And by doing so, they have not only improved their industries within the U.S., but helped educate and involve consumers and raised the bar for taste around the world.
Inspectors said that while the number of settings judged to be inadequate had risen from 1% the previous inspection year to 4%, this was because they had "raised the bar".
They raised the bar significantly, college and career-ready standards.
Zant, raised the bar for habeas corpus petitions .
FORBES: Jeffrey MacDonald, Innocence, and the Future of Habeas Corpus
The former England 'B' international, who also had a spell managing Scunthorpe United in the mid-1990s, has raised the bar at a club which until 2004 was holding its own at Championship level.
BBC: SPORT | Football | My Club | Walsall | Money stops the rot at the Bescot
Mercedes-Benz, always a leader in automotive technology, has once again raised the bar for the BMWs, Audis, and Lexuses of the world with the Distance Plus radar cruise system available in new S-Class sedans.
ENGADGET: Mercedes' new S-Class rocks Distance Plus urban cruise control
应用推荐