Those who strive for excellence in a healthy way take genuine pleasure in trying to meet high standards. Perfectionists on the other hand are full of self-doubts and fears of disapproval, ridicule and rejection. The healthy striver has drive, while the perfectionist is driven.
MYTH: Perfectionists get things done and they do things right.
REALITY: Perfectionists often have problems with procrastination, missed deadlines, and low productivity.Psychologists find that perfectionists tend to be "all-or-nothing" thinkers. They see events and experiences as either good or bad, perfect or imperfect, with nothing in between. Such thinking often leads to procrastination, because a requirement of flawless perfection, in even the smallest of tasks, can become fearfully overwhelming. The perfectionist believes that the flawless product or superb performance must be produced every time. Perfectionists believe if it can't be done perfectly, it's not worth doing.
Such beliefs often lead to undesired results. A perfectionist student may turn in a paper weeks late (or not at all), rather than turn it in on time with less-than-perfect sentences. A perfectionist worker may spend so much time agonizing over some non-critical detail that a critical project misses its deadline.
MYTH: Perfectionists are determined to overcome all obstacles to success.
REALITY: Although perfectionists follow an "I'll-keep-trying-until-it's-perfect" credo, they are especially vulnerable to potentially serious difficulties such as depression, writer's block, and performance and social anxiety.
The good news is that there is a list of coping strategies. The first is
1. Make a list of the advantages and disadvantages of trying to be perfect. When you make your own list of costs and benefits, you may find that the costs are too great. You may discover that problems with relationships, excessive workaholism, eating and substance abuse problems, and other compulsive behaviors (plus the accompanying anxiety, nervousness, feelings of inadequacy, self-criticism, and so on) actually outweigh whatever advantages perfectionism holds for you.
All this smacks of imposter syndrome to me, while explaining a lot of the procrastination I witness (both mine and others'). And it sounds like so many people I know. Does it sound like you?
12 comments:
I'm not a perfectionist, so I definitely don't have a problem with turning in slightly subpar stuff. (Not to mention that you usually have multiple chances to revise it during the review process, so why go out of your way at the beginning?) But I know people who are perfectionists, and it's definitely crippling for them.
That's me entirely. Completely and totally. Except for the missing deadlines thing. I'm big on those and tend to meet them (well, external ones at least).
It does sound like me, although I am trying learning to stop myself; some times it works better than others.
That's me alright! Although, I don't think the list of pros and cons of perfection would be an effective strategy for dealing with it. In the end, it might make you realize that it is not a good behavior pattern but will do nothing to help stop it or change.
I guess I'm fortunate to never have been good enough to hope for perfection... so I do my best, taking time and technical constraints into account, and it works for me.
I think it would be more efficient to make a list of pros and cons of perfection on a particular project to deal with it. That would help realizing that the Earth is not going to split open and swallow us if we are not submitting a flaw-free paper, for instance.
Oh, and, I consider meeting deadlines as pretty high on the scale of perfection - I guess that when some people think "what's the point of submitting on time if it's not perfect?", I think "what's the point of having a perfect paper if it's not ready on time?"...
Me and everyone I work with! But I'd like to think I've learned to be more pragmatic over the years. This is actually one of the reasons I like having deadlines--they help keep me from going completely berserk on a project by forcing me to turn it in at a particular time regardless of whether it's "perfect enough."
I used to have some perfectionist tendencies in high school, but luckily I was able to break free at Uni when all the deadlines and increased work load precluded handing in anything I regarded as perfect. I still feel crushed if I spot a typo or other mistake in anything I've submitted, but I'm now able to finish a piece of work without obsessing over every single sentence. I wouldn't be able to do my job otherwise!
p.s. the all-italic text was a wee bit difficult for me to read... might just be me though.
I'm developing into more of a perfectionist each day. My standards are getting higher and higher. I never used to be that way. I used to make a reasonable effort within the time frame and constraints for each task and be quite satisfied with that. So I was 3 % off getting a first class degree (which in the UK is just fine). My thesis was not a life defining magnum opus, but representative of 3 years work. Each paper I write is better than the previous, each piece of work based on stronger reasoning.
I like to keep perspective and don't spend time fretting over getting things perfect, but I do spend more time fretting over getting things perfect. I do hate it when people read my written work though. I could revise every single draft many many times and still feel like it will be ridiculed or rejected straight away. Pretty ironic for a blogger...
ginger peach, I know what you mean, but I've seen people decide not to submit papers for special issues of journals because they couldn't meet the deadline, undoubtedly as a result of perfectionism.
propter, it's getting worse? on no! And yes, it is ironic for a blogger. Especially one who posts so frequently, as you do. But your posts are always perfect, I mean great...
cae, I agree about the italics. Won't do that again. not perfect. :)
Perfectionism was a major problem for me when I was a kid/teenager, but it's getting better now. It's knowing the world won't split open, like ginger peach said. Ianqui, I like your point about multiple opportunities for revision.
Like you, it was a major problem for me in the past. But I've been consciously working to let go of perfectionism since I entered college 6 years ago, and I'm proud to say I've made considerable progress. This is one of the places where my regular therapy has helped the most. I think now I am closer to striving for excellence in a healthy way, and I'm able to let a lot of things go. But I still deal with being fearfully overwhelmed and depressed a lot.
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