Stop Subconscious Sabotage: Avoid Perfectionism
If you’ve ever made excuses for a missed deadline or put things off until the last minute, claiming that you’re a perfectionist, you’re not just lying to other people. You’re also lying to yourself.
Perfection Does Not Exist
No one is perfect, and there is no path to perfection. You’ve likely heard the idea that “beauty is in the eye of the beholder,” and that is true regarding perfection too. If you can begin to see the high quality yet imperfect results are good enough, you’ll start getting more done.
Let Go of All-or-Nothing Thinking
One problem with perfection is that it’s usually also involved with all or nothing thinking. The truth is that almost all subjects have nuanced facets to them.
Stop Being Overly Critical
Many people who suffer from perfectionism also are very critical of others and themselves. You do want to think critically about your choices, but you don’t want to be nitpicky about everything you do because no one is perfect.
Learn Goal Setting
One of the best things you can learn to combat perfectionism is to learn how to set goals properly, including setting up your process and daily tasks that will lead to success. The entire goal-setting process helps you understand the problems you want to solve and the impact you want to make.
Take Baby Steps
The power of small daily action that chips away at every single goal you want to succeed at is the best way to ensure less failure and more success. After all, most people who claim to be perfectionists are just fearful.
Avoid Multitasking
No one can multitask the human mind doesn’t work that way. You will not be multitasking if you’re watching television while you work. You’ll be switching your focus back and forth, take longer to get the work done, and do it less effectively too. It’s not worth it.
Set Realistic Standards
When you set your goals, you’ll want to know what finished will look like in advance. Instead of letting your gut choose, set deadlines and criteria that signal finished just like your English teacher did in school. These standards will help you finish projects on time and successfully.
Accept that perfection is an impossible standard for you and others that can never be achieved, you can let it go and experience the success you always wanted.
