The Curse of Perfection

Fighting the desire to be flawless

Efe Kurnaz on Unsplash

At one time or another, haven’t we all sought perfection? A perfect score on a test, a flawless presentation, or the ultimate date.

And yet, excessive perfectionism can be exhausting, pushing us to our limits and leaving us emotionally drained or unable to complete what is needed, when it is required.

While it is not wrong to wish to improve performance and meet high standards, it is not always helpful to view anything that falls short of perfection as a failure.

Former Clinical Psychologist Alice Boyes suggests perfectionism has the potential to limit productivity in the workplace:

• Reluctance to prioritize can mean it is difficult to assign some tasks to the “unimportant” pile. Perfectionists typically want to control everything and can find it hard to let go of minor details and the non-essential in order to focus on what is needed.
• Obligation to over-deliver can result in the continual need to beat expectations and excel at everything. This persistent expectation is linked to feelings of anxiety, a lack of confidence, and the nagging doubt of imposter syndrome.
• Avoidance of failure can prevent perfectionists from starting positive habits (paralysis by analysis) or striving for a goal unless…