Improvement Over Perfection
Most people may agree that striving to be perfect is a positive trait. Most of us have been taught from a young age to always try our best at whatever we set out to accomplish and good things will happen as a result. Trying our best is usually a good thing. However, trying to be perfect, if not done with the proper mindset, can sometimes have some negative effects.
Some people tend to not be satisfied unless everything has gone as planned down to the smallest detail. This is typically known as a perfectionist. Even then, at times, people try to self-sabotage their own dreams and actions. They are spinning their wheels and procrastinating doing things for fear that they will fail. Perfectionism can be all-encompassing and have two different sides to it. One side is that you are afraid to do anything “risky“ for fear of failure. On the other end of the spectrum, the inability to be able to acknowledge an accomplishment because it didn’t go 100% as planned and, therefore, is a failure.
“Improvement over perfection” is a flexible mantra to follow. It keeps our focus on the positive aspects of a situation. Emphasis on the improvement of an issue rather than dwelling on an imperfection keeps our emotions in check and allows wiggle room when everything may not have gone exactly as planned. A minor setback doesn’t matter because you are focusing on what was accomplished. Seek to be ambitious without being a perfectionist. Be kind to yourself and acknowledge your accomplishments.
Some perfectionists are overly concerned about what others think about them. They are concerned with portraying a certain image in front of others. But why should we worry about what other people are thinking when we have no control over it? Furthermore, it doesn’t matter what people think anyway. Too often we worry about things that we have no control over. A great way to avoid some of the pitfalls of perfectionism is to routinely practice mindfulness. Mindfulness is an excellent way to keep life in a proper positive perspective. You can learn more about Mindfulness in our recent blogpost “Making MindfulnessYour Own.”
