Do you ever get stuck because things are just not perfect enough? Perfectionism is a roadblock that some people wear like a badge of honor and that’s what we’re tackling in this edition of Shop Talk.
We’ve all heard it – and may have said it…
“I’ve got such high standards, it’s got to be perfect before I do it.”
Do you know who says that? The people who end up finishing last. And do you know why?
Because they never get anything done.
They become a martyr to their perfectionism and it becomes their excuse for not taking action.
Watch Shop Talk
Many Of Us Suffer From Perfectionism
I have a successful business, but from time to time I need to call myself out on perfectionism, too. Let’s talk about the Shop Talk videos I do, like the one above…
I used to have a video guy. The video guy lived in the same city as me, and he would come to my house and he would shoot 10 or 15 videos at a time. Then he would add the bookends, upload them to YouTube, and make everything perfect for me. He’d show up with his fancy-shmancy camera, and all I had to do was look pretty and talk to the lens.
Then I moved.
All of a sudden, I didn’t have a video person! What’s a girl to do?
Your videos have to be taken by a video person, right? Otherwise they’re just not good enough, right? I went over a year without creating regular video content for my blog.
Sounds like perfectionism to me.
So what happened? I had to make a decision. I decided that done was better than perfect. That’s right, done is better than perfect. This video is brought to you by my trusty iPhone 6 Plus.
Imperfect action is better than perfect inaction. Let go of #perfectionism in your #business! Click To TweetOf course, I do have standards, and I do want things to look a certain way. So, I invested in hiring an editor who would add bookends, and make the stuff all look good for me, and upload it to my YouTube channel, and do all that stuff that I don’t know (and don’t want to know) how to do.
And, I did more than just invest…
I invested in a year’s worth of editing, because if you don’t have skin in the game you’re not going to take action.
I did the same thing when I wrote my book, Pilot To Profit. I invested what could be somebody’s salary for a year to get my book finished, because I knew that I needed to do that in order to get it done. If I relied on my own high standards and tendencies toward perfectionism, it would never have been completed. It would not have been published; it would not have been released into the world.
What about you? What is that thing that you’ve wanted to do forever that you’ve repeatedly made excuses about and not completed?
Tell me in the comments below this post – but I don’t want you to just leave a comment; I want you to leave a commitment.
That’s right, I want you to leave a commitment.
What’s one thing you are going to get done? What is one thing that you have been stalling on because it’s just not quite perfect enough?
Done is better than perfect.
Release the need for perfection, and just start.
Perfectionism is a roadblock in #business. Kick that roadblock to the curb! Click To TweetThe beauty is when you start, you learn. You learn what you want to do differently. You learn how to tweak and adjust and refine as you move forward. If you never start because you’re stuck in perfectionism remember that there are a lot of people hustling around you who have let that go and are getting things done.
If you don’t get past your perfectionism you’re going to get left behind. It’s your choice – leave a commitment below and kick your perfectionism to the curb.
20 thoughts on “Do You Suffer From Perfectionism?”
Do regular video
Yep. What she said
Share it in the Profit Primer group when you do them Natalie, I want to see! <3
Excellent article. I do suffer from perfectionism and I have found that when I am doing something that is out of my comfort zone that this “disease” becomes even stronger. What if I look like a fool? Who am I to do this? etc. etc. There has to be a balance between doing something correctly and having it done “perfect”. I have realized that having something done 85-90% correctly is equal to being 100% perfect. Up until 85% correct, the climb is pretty smooth. Anything past 85% correctness the hill becomes steeper and past 90%, it becomes almost a vertical wall.
So what am I committing to? Uploading a video blog every 2 weeks.
Great! Can’t wait to see AND… I want you to watch this video and set up your Gravatar too https://lisalarter.com/get-your-gravatar-on/
Thanks for sharing and for reminding me that being perfect is not always the best.
I too, can get caught up in the perfectionism circle…going around and around without getting anything accomplished. Now days I stick to my deadlines and ensure that everything works properly and there is a level of quality that my clients expect from me….and I let it go! (Singing the FROZEN song right about now)
And by the way…your video is perfect!
Thank you! Deadlines work to motivate me too! You need a gravatar too so we can see your photo! https://lisalarter.com/get-your-gravatar-on/
Great video! I vow to do more periscoping and stop stalling out because I think I need to shoot them in the pool.
Awesome, and yes, you can talk pool without being in a pool! I agree
Great video Lisa! I never would have guessed that it was filmed using an iPhone!
I too struggle with perfectionism & it’s something I’ve been working on lately. I tend to ask too many people their opinion on what I’m doing instead of listening to myself. This is going to stop! Don’t get me wrong, input is usually helpful, but I let it stop me from getting things done too often.
I’m also committing to write a blog post at least once a week. I will no longer let myself get in the way. I will refuse to listen to the voice inside that says it’s not good enough.
Good stuff, tell that negative nelly to go away. You are more than good enough 🙂
With “To Dos” piling up around me, your message is timely……….
On I go!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Thanks again Lisa!
Go Lori #Schmidtke 🙂
Thanks Lisa! It’s always perfect timing. I’ve been working on letting go of perfect for being good enough for now for the last 2 years. Some things are more difficult than others though. I’ve been procrastinating on doing group workshops because I did one 5 years ago that I believe didn’t go well. I had a revelation 2 weeks ago on why and it’s around that I need to be perfect because I wasn’t good enough. Well! I wrote many pages on it and tapped it out. Now I’m doing my first workshop March 10 and excited to do it! 🙂
Done is definitely better than perfect. My book would never have been
finished if it were not for your kind kick in my backside.
Lisa – Thanks for the reminder and modeling the act of getting it done. It’s wonderful to watch you actively practicing what you teach!
To just get it done!
If I had a nickel for every client I’ve told this to – I’d have to give it back because I don’t follow my own advice very well. Thanks for the reminder. I may need to print out a big sign “Done is better than perfect” and hang it on my wall!!
Lisa, you just answered some of my questions from another comment I just posted to you? I definitely suffer from thinking that I have to know everything before I do anything. Fear probably stopping me…I feel that for people to trust me I have to know everything. ..but really I just have to know more then they do..which I do. I’m hiding behind my fear of technology so my intention is to do something about this. I also have too many things on my plate cuz I’m a little ADD!!! So I need to focus!!! I’m also frightened to spend the money and perhaps fail as I’ve got two kids in private school and all my dollars are going there.. am I putting myself on the back burner or just being practical?
Definitely putting you on the back burner. Ask yourself this – if your daughter wanted to do what you want to do and she was an adult, what would you tell her? As a mom, everything you do in terms of treating yourself well and following your own path is teaching your kids how to behave when they grow up, especially little girls.