Overcoming the Need for Perfection

How often are you paralyzed by perfection, when the desire to do something perfect keeps you from ever doing it at all? Do you have a book to write? A picture to paint? How about a new career move or great invention on the back burner? For most of us there are at least a few things in our lives that we never take action on. Here are just a few of the excuses we use to justify our position – These may sound familiar to you.

Excuse 1 – I’m waiting for just the right moment.

Excuse 2 – I don’t know enough about it yet to move forward.

Excuse 3 – I can’t think of the right way to say it.

Excuse 4 – It won’t be right anyway so why bother doing it.

How many of these have you used before? Got any other favorites? Even though these excuses sound different, essentially they all boil down to the same symptom, a need for perfection.

So what is the perfection you seek anyway? Is it fair to say that rather than seeking perfection, you’re really just creating an elaborate and seemingly unsurpassable excuse to keep you from moving ahead? We have heard it said countless times that perfection doesn’t exist, yet we still strive for this quality in much of what we do. Are we setting ourselves up on purpose?

If we truly believe that perfection doesn’t exist, yet we use it as a tool in which to measure things by, then we’ll never add up and won’t meet our own expectations. Essentially we set ourselves up for failure before we even begin. This condition is then recognized by our egos, and our internal protector then steps in to keep us from making progress towards whatever it may be, even if it’s a life long dream or passion.

So how can we overcome this obstacle? Let’s try looking at it from another perspective. Consider that everything you do is in fact perfect. No matter which direction you go, whether you win, lose, succeed, or fail, it’s all perfect. How would this mindset effect the actions you take? Would it no longer matter whether it was the ideal situation? Would being ‘right’ no longer hold you hostage? Chances are you just might take on some new challenges and obstacles that could open up a whole new world of possibility for you. It may even remove the self-imposed limits that currently define your beliefs.

What happens if you take action and discover you’re not really where you wanted to be or envisioned being? Simply re-direct yourself and keep moving. It’s that simple, you’re never stuck, you’re only temporarily in that spot, move onwards and upwards. Don’t spend time there beating yourself up about it, accept it as perfect based upon what you knew when you made the decision, and then make another decision based upon your new level of knowledge. Who knows, you might just learn something in the process.

Now, the next time you’re faced with a situation where perfection becomes your threshold for action, remember to take action anyway, and know that no matter which direction you go, it’s all perfect.