The Nemesis
of Perfection
By Stacey Mayo
Are you waiting? Rather than living out their dreams, many people wait
and wait and wait. What are you waiting for? Clarity on what direction
to go in? To get really, really good at whatever it is you want to do?
For a sign that it's the right time to move on? For a guarantee that you
will not be rejected or fail? These are just a few of the thoughts people
have which keep them from moving forward. Stop and think for a minute
about what thoughts usually stop you.
Often these thoughts are tied in with the need to do things right or perfectly
or with the need to know what to expect. This is the nemesis of perfection.
Simply put, if we wait for everything to line up perfectly before taking
some kind of action, we will be waiting forever.
I had to be pushed by my coach to lead my first workshop nearly 10 years
ago. I kept saying, "I wasn't ready." What I meant was, "it wasn't perfect,
yet." What I have since learned and keep re-learning is perfection and
refinement come in the doing. That is where the real learning takes place.
I led my first personal mission statement workshop for a group of acquaintances
at no charge. The workshop wasn't great -- but it wasn't terrible either.
I got incredibly helpful feedback from the participants. From there I
was able to refine it and teach it in the adult education programs of
the local colleges. The feedback I got from the participants is not anything
I could have learned on my own. The learning was in the doing. Now I teach
and certify other people to facilitate that workshop and have turned it
into the workbook in an ebook, "Is
Your Ladder Leaning Against the Wrong Wall?. None of that would have
been possible had I not taken that first step nearly ten years ago.
When I was proofreading my book, "I
Can't Believe I Get Paid To Do This!" for the 5th time, that same
fear of missing a mistake was present. But this time it would be printed
and there would be no taking it back. Eventually, I had to get over that
and send the book to print. To my knowledge, there is at least one typo
in the book (my mom caught it :)). And when I go back for a second printing
very soon, I will correct it. In the meantime, the book is in the hands
of a lot of people who are moving forward with their dreams.
The fear of failure is tied in with the nemesis of perfection; i.e., if
I don't do it right or make the right choice, then I fail. Failure does
not have to be devastating. Rather it can be viewed as an opportunity
to learn. Everyone fails sometimes. The people who have the most successes
in life also generally have had the most failures. That is because they
keep coming back and try again and again.
Where are you willing to take a chance this week? Here are some possibilities
to choose from or create your own.
- Create or write something and
allow it to be okay if it's not perfect.
- Do something you've never done
before.
- Ask someone you've been admiring
or would like to get to know out for coffee or a meal.
- Share your creative work with
someone whose opinion you respect.
- Submit your idea, work, talent
to someone who has the ability to hire you or purchase something from you.
What are you waiting for? Take the
leap (or at least one small step) and let me know how it goes.
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