How I Killed Perfectionism in My Career and Life

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I used to label myself as a perfectionist, but I was quickly learning through my curiosity and research that being a perfectionist meant something that I didn’t want to be.

Perfectionism, when you get to the bottom of it, is an attempt to earn approval and avoid shame through our actions.

When I came to terms with that, I wanted nothing to do with it.

I arrived at a word that better connected with my efforts: excellence.

Perfectionism can look like ambition from the outside.

Both perfectionism and excellence can produce incredibly high-quality work.

The difference is what’s driving you and what happens inside you when you fall short.

I decided to pursue excellence fiercely without believing that my worth depends on the outcome.

In order to do this, I realized that I had to create a human element or data point that I could live within.

I decided to make up a 1% failure rate in my work.

This gave me permission to fail, to be human, and to know that sometimes I am going to fall short of my own standards and the needs of others.

If a client sends me 100 emails and I forget to complete something from 1 of those emails, that fits right into my error rate for excellence.

If I completed a photoshoot for a client and had uploaded 200 photos, and two of them weren’t desirable, that aligns with my 1% error rate.

If I go 365 days without messing up or causing any problems for a client, and they take the time to kindly point out one simple thing that could be adjusted, that definitely fits within my 1% error rate.

It gave me so much grace for myself and finally allowed me to be a high-performing professional without continually coming down on myself for missing the marks that I had established as my standard.

Could you allow yourself to fail 1% of the time?

What would that look like for you? Would it allow you to be human? Would your mind relax and your work improve? Would you sleep better? Would you be kinder to yourself? 

Perfectionism is for approval-seeking folks that won’t look shame in the eye.

Excellence is for those that want to try hard, produce good work, and welcome in their humanity along the way.

The choice is yours.

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