Perfection is a slippery slope for a lot of people. Whatever you do just never seems to be quite good enough. You keep tweaking and adjusting things to make them better. In most cases, it probably does make them better. But does the extra time that you spend doing that work make them that much better? This is the dilemma for those who seek out perfection. Brene Brown breaks down what perfectionism really is. “It’s a way of thinking that says this: ‘If I look perfect, live perfect, work perfect, I can avoid or minimize criticism, blame and ridicule,’” she says.
Brene Brown also said: “Perfectionism is other-focused: What will they think?” Ask yourself if you are making these changes for you to satisfy a need for perfection or you are doing it to avoid the criticism of others. Hiding behind perfectionism will keep you playing small and no one will ever see what you are doing. Put your work out there and recognize that the work you are doing is already excellent.
One of my coach friends mentioned that she now seeks out excellence over perfection. That is really a great way to think about it. You need to weigh out how much your time is worth and does it make sense to spend more time on this one thing or move on to the next one? Can people get what they need from what you have provided so far? Have you done your best? Give yourself the permission to say that you have done this with excellence and your time is better spent on something else now. I could make this post a lot longer, but in the spirit of taking my own advice…it is already excellent! Mic drop!