Perfectionism: A Path to Nowhere

Perfectionism is often seen as a positive trait. Striving for perfection can push us to do our best, but it can also be a major hindrance. Instead of always being proud of our perfectionist tendencies, we need to recognize that they can hold us back.

Take this website, for example. My friend handled the frontend work independently, and it made me realize the pitfalls of my own perfectionism. Even though the product wasn't flawless, my friend's independent work on the frontend was instrumental. It taught me the value of swift decisions, even if they aren't perfect, in achieving efficient and successful outcomes.

As Roger Federer said:

In tennis, perfection is impossible... In the 1,526 singles matches I played in my career, I won almost 80% of those matches... Now, I have a question for all of you... what percentage of the POINTS do you think I won in those matches? Only 54%. In other words, even top-ranked tennis players win barely more than half of the points they play. When you lose every second point, on average, you learn not to dwell on every shot

This isn't just about tennis; it's a real-life lesson.

Perfectionism is a dead end. It can lead to endless decision-making and wasted time. I am not advocating for abandoning high standards. Even as I write this blog, I struggle with perfectionism. But I am learning to take it one step at a time.

My friend taught me an important lesson: start building something and then make it better. This approach works wonders. For this personal website, I had the domain for four years but didn’t take any action because I wanted everything to be perfect. Thanks to my friend's help, I overcame that hurdle.

You've heard it from a perfectionist: perfectionism has its perks. It often leads to high-quality results, but it can also cause significant delays, especially when something is needed now. I could write a book about it, but for a blog, this should suffice.

If I had to sum it up in one sentence, I’d say: It's better to have something less than perfect now than to wait endlessly for perfection.

Thank you for reading! I hope you found this helpful :)

And who knows? If I manage to overcome my perfectionism, I might just write a book about it someday.