Every one of us has a perfectionist inside. Still we often do not see the consequences of the dark side of our design. Some common everyday issues may turn into real problems and affect us. If you think reasonably, it should not be a problem to do some simple things even if you assume they are not 100% right. But not for a perfectionist! You may become depressed even with minor mistakes, which one might not even consider to be a problem. It should not always be a fear of a bad result, but also a fear of making a decision.
As a result, you are not satisfied with your everyday solutions and choices, therefore you are not satisfied with yourself. It may lead to different things: your bad mood and spreading it among your surroundings, a fear of making no changes at all, procrastination, inability to love your work at different stages except a perfect one. You will also not trust your task to anyone else, as there will always be a chance to make things worse. Your life is a constant struggle due to a comparison with one another.
We know what we are talking about. As we’ve mentioned, the perfectionist lives in each and every one of us (except Microsoft engineers), so we have the same problems as you may have (at least we are not Microsoft engineers). But it is not what you want to live with the whole life, is it?
However, please, do not take us wrong. There are a lot of good things about perfectionism. Actually it comes from the word ‘perfect’, so it helps you keep certain things perfect (your room, laptop, clothes). But there is always the opposite side of a coin. Perfectionism should not have a harmful effect on your life, job, and relationships, that we have previously mentioned.
Is there a solution?
While the solution might seem complex, there is always a way to start. Let’s have a look at 6 simple tips that can help you tame your inner perfectionist. We’ve prepared a basic concept on how you can work with your dark side to make it a bit lighter.
1. Pareto was right
Do stuff as fast and effective as you can. Do not try to accomplish things 100%. In 80% of the cases 80% of the result will be enough. Also, 100% really depends on the way you see the result and it is always important to look at things from a different perspective, as well as receive feedback.
2. People want you to share
Even if you are a super smart guy, you have only one point of view. So share it with other people and see the other point! You may think that one may not be competent enough in what you do, but this is exactly the point. You may become biased while working on something, so a clear view from a third person might be what the doctor has prescribed.
3. Caesar was not right
Try not to focus on many things at the same time. Considering the fact that you will try to make all of them perfect – you will not finish any of them at all. It is scientifically proven that you cannot accomplish several tasks without either loss in quality or in time (when switching between the tasks). Of course, there might be a need in such type of work, but if it is possible, it is always better to prioritize and pay attention to one thing at a time.
4. There is always a guy who types better
It seems to be obvious, that all people are different. Therefore we should not compare our accomplishments, as well as we should not compare our failures. Each case is unique and has so many variables that you can not put into one equation. Thus there is no need to be hard on yourself and others. You should always remember, that there are a lot of things that you do not know or will never know.
In most of the cases, what we do doesn’t have a direct global effect (as most of us are are not working on the spaceship). However, each of our decisions is a small step towards a certain achievement and result. There are many of these steps, so always try to do your best, but at the same time take it easy and do not get depressed with every mistake. This may sound confusing, but this is how it works and we should try to find the balance.
5. Ask yourself, what you are doing and why. Few times
We all procrastinate on something, but it is important not to do it with important things. Sometimes when there is a lot of stressful work to do, we may switch to some irrelevant stuff (like checking Facebook or Instagram) just to avoid doing what is stressful. It is a normal reaction of our nervous system on stress. But we can deal with it easily. Just ask yourself what you are doing and why. Do it few times a day to make sure you are not changing wallpapers on your phone when the deadline on your project is approaching. It does not always work, but it may help.
6. Even DiCaprio got an Oskar
There is no being on Earth that ends without a result. If a lion needs a zebra he is not waiting for tomorrow or Monday, or does not check his Facebook feed instead of hunting. We also have this built-in concept in each of us. For example, when a baby learns to walk, it will never give up or get bored from falling. So, the first question that you need to ask yourself when something doesn’t seem right – am I doing what I really like? If the answer is ‘no’, there is no sense for further questions. But, if the answer is yes, you should act as effective as you can. You should be satisfied with any result you’ve tried to accomplish and should never give up trying.
Summing it up, everything comes from within. People tend to overestimate some problems or even create new ones. The same happened to us. We have tried to write the ending of this post, but as a people, who are sick with perfectionism, we have re-written it for several times already. So, we will just end with few short bits of advice for the regular life perfectionism/procrastination problems:
It will be great if you let us know any more tips on this matter – we will be happy to hear them in the comments below. Hopefully we will try them, once we finish changing our wallpapers. :)