I often struggle with having imperfect work. My impatience leads me down a path where everything I do has to be perfect the first time. My first essay draft must be exact, my code must be optimally efficient, and homework has to be 100% correct and robust. I’ve spent countless hours dwelling on tiny details, making 0.1% improvements instead of big sweeping changes that actually matter.
My attention often narrows on the most minute of details, which often prevents me from seeing the picture. I often procrastinate tedious work, simply because I know I will feel unsatisfied for hours on end trying to achieve perfection. It’s often this mindset of perfection that halts me from making progress. When starting a new venture or task, getting something out the door is step one. The details come as we go, piecing together slowly over time until some semblance of perfection is reached. Most aspects of life are comprised of iterative steps and improvements on a solid foundation.
A good, solid base is necessary, but a perfect one is not. Imperfect work can be improved. Mistakes can be fixed. But, you have to have something to start with first. Most of the most successful people were people who have tried a lot and failed a lot. They go through 10 ideas in the time that the average person takes to go through one. They put a lot at risk, but that risk is what can usher in the reward. A focus on perfection at the start simply stifles the development.
I feel uneasy when things aren’t exactly the way I want it to be, and this small feeling of uneasiness prevents me from doing bigger things. I can appreciate my mindset in some situations, but I can recognize it isn’t ideal. A good mindset is a balance of making rapid development at the start, only to refine when refinement is needed. A methodology that goes against my nature will be hard to internalize and act on, but integrating an existing mindset into a better one may just strike the chord I need.
Don’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perfect_is_the_enemy_of_good