How to deal with Perfectionism

I recently heard a quote from @chriswillx that really resonated with me.

“Perfectionism is just procrastination masquerading as quality control.”

Perfectionism can be a double-edged sword.

On the one hand, it can push you to do your best work. But on the other hand, it can hold you back and prevent you from taking action.

I'm a perfectionist myself. In everything I do, I struggle with perfectionism. I always want to complete something perfectly or I’ll feel terrible. But then I also never feel like it'll be good enough so I just give up early on.

I was setting impossibly high standards for myself, and when I failed to meet them, I beat myself up and feel discouraged.

It’s because I was failing to realize this one simple thing:

The quality of your work is subjective

What feels imperfect for you, might look perfect for others.

So, here is what helped me remedy the issue. Instead of striving for “perfect work”, I shifted my goals to “create imperfect work, that others see as perfect". Because, if I wait to publish what I consider “my perfect work”, I know I will never post anything. My internal critic will always find something to fault anyway.

A very interesting concept from @struthless is the 70% rule.
Aim at 70%, not 100%. Make friends with imperfection. Done is always better than perfect.

Because ultimately …

Quantity leads to quality.

“Your body of work is only as good as the project you finished”.

The only way to achieve the quality you want is to build an enormous body of work. And for so many people, “perfectionism” is standing in their way.

If perfectionism is the reason you’ve only made 2.5 videos this year, then you’ll never reach the quality you desire.

Don’t get me wrong, attention to detail is great, but when it strays into perfectionism that stops you from finishing your projects and releasing them to the world, it is no longer helping you.

Embrace “the suck”

Does your project suck? Post it anyway.

Perfectionism delays the most crucial part of any process - feedback. The quicker you can get feedback, the faster quality improves.

Yes, you probably suck right now.

But that's the point, everyone sucks in the beginning, so keep it up!

You should see crappy work as the necessary stepping stone to great work. The slow progress of skill acquisition is essential to your eventual success. Quality is a result of quantity.

If you often hold back for a fear of not reaching perfection, why not try doing something different today: make something that is good enough and release it to the world anyway!

Thanks for taking time to read,

Erwan