It’s difficult to accept the necessity of failure in the growth process. People generally acknowledge there is some value in the idea of learning from failure, but it’s usually an intellectual recognition, not a practical action.
For the most part, people’s thoughts and actions stay firmly attached to the behavior pattern of staying as far away as possible from the risk of failure, especially if other people might see it. A phrase I often hear is, “I’m a perfectionist.”
Perfectionism doesn’t improve quality, production, or efficiency. It disrupts and destroys them. Perfectionism is a fancy cover for ego and procrastination.
Perfectionists are less interested in producing excellence than in projecting the image of perfection. It’s about ego, not results. Their goal is the image of perfection, even when that image is only for themselves. It becomes an identity attachment.
The procrastination behind perfectionism is painfully obvious. If it must be perfect, you can always justify perpetually delaying it. When only perfect attempts and products are allowed to see the light of day, few things of significance ever see the light of day.
Once you understand clearly enough just how far from perfect you are now and always will be (as am I), you can embrace the impossibility of perfection. Then, you can commit to creating excellence and lean into the failures that teach you how to form it.
Drop your desire for perfection. Raise your commitment to excellence.
Brick by brick. Do the work.
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