Frozen by perfection
Perfect plans for the future and perfect solutions to problems don’t exist. Perfection paralyzes people.
Life is too short and this world is too broken for us to wait for perfection before progress.
Parents waiting to find “perfect solutions” to child rearing waste valuable time. Couples seeking “perfect answers” to intimacy never find them. Businesses working on “perfect organizational structures” spin their wheels.
Perfect solutions don’t exist because everything’s changing. Today’s perfect solution is next month’s clunker.
Leaders change with change. Leaders who don’t change with change aren’t leaders, they’re road blocks.
Choose the best option available today and move forward.
I’m not encouraging mediocrity. I’m encouraging you to, “get off your butt and act.” Adjust trajectory as you go.
Leaders reach higher by choosing the best available option.
The pursuit of perfection freezes people.
Dan,
That’s a great point. We often wait too long for answers to all our questions or until we have perfect alignment and we miss the window of opportunity. Give yourself a deadline and move forward with the information you have at that time.
thanks for jumping in Maurilio. love your site. http://www.maurilioamorim.com/ Be well
Very true. I’ve seen more than one effort stopped in its tracks by analysis paralysis.
I’m with you Rick… love the expression analysis paralysis. Thanks for contributing to the discussion and your blog at http://yuzzi.com/
Dan-I completely agree. The threshold doesn’t always have to be perfection, but sometimes whether it’s good enough to go to market.
Thanks for jumping in…now all we have to do is decide what is good enough??
You are very right Dan.. I have seen many organizations stale as their leaders keep delaying decisions, thinking they will perfect it.. and usually the delta in improvement is negligible … that is if they still can seize that opportunity ..
Ayman,
Thanks you for leaving your first comment on Leadership Freak. Good point! The amount of improvement one MIGHT achieved isn’t worth choking off forward movement.
Looking forward to hearing from you again soon.
Dan
I loved this sentence “all we have to do is decide what is good enough??”
Mohamed,
Thanks for the good work. I hope you keep coming back.
Best to you,
Dan
Dan,
Nicely said. If the problem were static like “fixing a photo on a picture frame” – then you might want to aim perfect solution. Leaders rarely face such “static” problems and as you rightly said, good leaders go with the flow and improvise on the go.
Cheers,
Raj
Raj,
Thanks for the good word. Love how you explain that leaders face complex problems and moving targets. Many of the problems leaders face have more than one solution.
Best to you,
Dan
Oh wow, I needed this one today. Framing and placing right next to my framed Anne Lamott quote: “Perfectionism is the voice of the oppressor”. I need constant reminding on this one…constant permission to allow myself to thaw, so I can actually DO something. Which is the exact reason I’m having issues with writing and my blog. I keep trying to revamp it because it’s not good enough. I’ve decided scrap it, and start over, allowing my creative energies to take the lead and not wait for perfection before I post. Thanks for the breath of fresh air, Dan.
Mimi,
You are not alone. 🙂 Thanks for sharing your own story. I know it helps others.
Maybe you should write the worst possible blog and post it. 🙂 Just get it over with.
Cheers,
Dan
Great post! I have spent lifetime of being paralyzed by too often seeking perfect when “getting the job done” would have been much more beneficial than a perfect result, much later. Many times this pursuit of perfection is a blessing, but many times it is not. After years of self analysis I have managed to overcome this by learning the right time for it, and when to ignore it, for the most part, but still have relapses from time to time at some inopportune moments. Nonetheless, this is a trait that my children also have and I have shared your post with them as you have summarized years of learning into one post. Thank You!
Shawn,
Love your story. Thank you for such an encouraging word!
Continued success to you,
Dan