It takes me so long to get something done.
Not because it’s hard, not because it’s confusing.
But because I want to make it the best that it can possibly be.
That’s a good thing, but in our quickly evolving world, I had to learn how to do away with making things the best it can be, in favor of actually just getting it out there, and delivering.
Perfectionism is like golden chains. Pretty to look at and keep, but will ruthlessly take away your freedom and steal your success.
Here are 6 tips I’ve found to do away with perfectionism.
Set a hard deadline
When I set out to create my online mini-course, and my free ebook (that you can get by signing up for my newsletter!), I was stuck for a long time, fiddling with little bits, changing the cover, some words, layout, and all of those little details.
Pretty soon, I didn’t want to release them, for fear of coming out with a subpar product.
But then again, what good will it do me, and other people, who could potentially be helped by the information, if I choose to keep it under wraps?
None.
One thing that helped me was to set a hard deadline, and to stick to it.
Release on this date. No ifs, ands, or buts.
And to give me an added push, I shared the deadline with friends, and my email list.
With people expecting output, and my credibility on the line, I worked as hard as I could, and on the deadline, pushed “send”.
It wasn’t a perfect product.
And it was perfectly alright.
Remove the “all or nothing” mindset
One of the lessons learned here, is that there is no such thing as “perfect.”
The trap of perfectionism, is that everything has to be perfect, otherwise, I won’t do it, or it won’t be enough.
This then limits us into chasing a standard that’s impossible to hit, a moving target.
A target which we ourselves move my mercilessly critiquing our own work, and always finding it inadequate.
Either we get all that we want, or we get none of it.
And that’s a dangerous mindset to have, since we will never get all that we have, perfectly.
There is so much more value in thinking and believing that we won’t get it perfect the first time, but rather, that we achieve success, and keep on improving from that point.
If you put out something that’s not perfect, that doesn’t mean you’re a failure. That doesn’t mean you’re anything less.
You’re only human. And the human being, doesn’t live with an “all or nothing” mindset. Otherwise, we’d all be dead.
We survive by finding out what works, and building upon that.
Every, single, time.
Go for the 80/20
And what works is usually the effort that gives us the most results, for the least amount of effort.
The 80/20 rule, or the Pareto principle, states that in anything, there is a 20% component, that gives out 80% of the results.
To contrast, perfectionism if wanting to get all the 100%, which means finding a way to do the 100%, even if the people you’re serving are happy with 80%.
To do away with perfectionism, you have to focus on what’s the 20%, that will give you the 80% results? Focus on your most high-leverage activities and actions, and work on them.
Never mind getting the 100%. You’ll never get it.
There will always be something to improve, change, or customize for your relevant audience.
Focus on improving bit by bit
Nobody gets from 0 to 100 in a split second (well, at least not yet, by current technological standards), and nobody becomes an overnight sensation, in the literal sense of the word.
But, that’s what perfectionism has you believe. That if you do everything right, set up everything perfectly, have all the stars align, and say the magic words, the silver bullet to solve all your problems will appear, and create all the results that you want, magically.
All untrue.
The only real magic that happens is the improvement you gain after improving bit, by bit, by bit. And then using the compounded knowledge, improvement, to be able to create the greatness, the results, that you seek.
Then, after you have put in the work, only then, do you get to become the overnight sensation.
Focus on improving 1% a day, day after day, and you’d be surprised how the improvements compound and stack up.
Rome wasn’t built in a day. The building blocks were built on top of one another, one block at a time, one day at a time.
Then, suddenly, Rome, was built.
Focus on the process of doing, then you’ll get to the result.
Just do it
All of these practices are useless, if you don’t go out and actually do something.
Part of my experience as a perfectionist, is wanting to do everything right the first time.
What happened to me, was that I read, and studied, and tried to find and absorb as much information as I can, to come up with some big, convoluted, detailed, master plan, to execute, and then to get the result that I wanted, one time, big time.
Only, that doesn’t work.
The only real, fast, way, to learn, and to learn how to execute with confidence, certainty, and excellence, is to just do it, and learn along the way.
Focus on one thing you want to try, to test, and go do it. See if that works.
If it does, congratulations! Keep on doing more of what works.
If it doesn’t, congratulations! You’re just found a way that doesn’t work, so then you can go and find, and try what would work.
Imagine Thomas Edison, who had to try, and try, and try, so many attempts and experiments, until he got to the working lightbulb that he wanted.
He wasn’t concerned with getting it perfect, and getting it right the first time. He focused on just doing it, finding what works, experimenting, and then suddenly,
There was light.
Celebrate small wins
Perfectionism wants you to believe, that the only acceptable result, is perfect. If it’s not perfect, then it’s no good.
Not only does that take a toll on you mentally, it also drags you down, emotionally.
Another trap of perfectionism, is that people won’t even start, or try something, because they don’t know, or they believe, that they won’t be able to do things perfectly.
Rather than feel the sting of failure, or the fear of failure, they would rather not try.
On the flip side, if you just do it, and keep on improving bit by bit, another tip to beat perfectionism, is to celebrate the small wins you encounter.
Find something that works? Give a high five! Find something that works even better? Pat yourself on the back, and give yourself a high five, too!
Allow yourself to celebrate and recognize the small wins and progress that you’re making.
It will motivate you to keep on going, and pushing further, as well as helping you build momentum towards your success.
And if there’s one thing that proves perfectionism is a myth, and that success is a product of finding what works, day in, day out, it’s momentum.
Celebrate the small wins, and build momentum of your taking action.
If you have built up momentum, even failures and setbacks won’t stop you.
You’ll just keep on going.
Towards success.
How do you deal with perfectionism? Please share in the comments, and let me know!
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