A Note On Perfectionism

This one goes out to all of my blogging friends who haven’t blogged in a while, particularly those who wait for inspiration (and perfection) to strike. I know what this is like – I suffer from perfectionism a lot – but I am learning that sometimes good enough is good enough.

While setting high standards is admirable, there is a point at which efforts to achieve perfection stop being positive, and turn instead into an exhausting state of being (I’ll let you in on a secret – I’ve been writing a book for over 7 years now and slowly getting nowhere because of my perfectionism).

Sometimes you need to realise that good enough is sufficient and when you reach that point in your endeavours, then simply stop. This is not an excuse to do a poor job, but it is intended to give you permission to do a good job and then leave it there. I can reach that point of good enough and then waste precious energy and time polishing and perfecting something past that point. It is about finding the balance and for perfectionists that isn’t always easy, but we have to try to find that balance somehow.

Abandon you masterpiece, sink into your real masterpiece ~ Leonard Cohen

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You might also like to read It’s Okay to Be Good and Not GreatIt’s Okay to Be Good and Not Great