Perfection paralysis

Nothing in this world is perfect. Be it a famous book, recipe or a person for that matter. If you have noticed something, every book has editions which is how the author tries to reach close to perfection. So, there is nothing called perfect.

Be it a task or a habit, It has to follow this loop of start, try, feedback, improve and keep repeating. That's how everything we do gets better to reach the virtual perfectionism.

I recently read a story of a famous YouTuber last night where he started with nothing and now has a good number of subscribers to his digital marketing course. By nothing I literally mean it. All he had was only a phone and a green cloth (saree if I am not wrong). All he was using was a table fan as a stand to support his phone. Coming from a rural background, he couldn't find a place with no noise and a plain background to record a good decent video. All these questions of not being able to make a perfect video let him down till a point but he somehow started with the only resources he had and those small steps made him reach this point. So, after hunting the words from his story, I finally found this topic named perfection paralysis very interesting and the only two words which let him stand out from others. I feel that it is quite common for what we all feel these days.

(Image Source:shorturl.at/ruACW )

Ok, let's think for a while. Ever have you struck with the thoughts like

• Will this be liked by people?

• Will the outcome be good/perfect?

• Will I be able to compete?

• Will I be able to complete it?

These are all common questions that wander in our minds before we start something. If you ask me, I have been postponing this idea of starting a blog for a while now and the reasons were those same questions. This is what perfection paralysis is all about, our mind playing a trick by throwing us those questions to keep us safe. This perfectionism can sometimes play against us in the form of self-criticism by turning our own mind into our enemy. This can sometimes have an effect on our mental health leading to anxiety, depression and numerous health risks. There is a study proven which says perfectionists are 51% more likely to die at a younger age. So, think again if you are striving for perfection.

Criticism to an extent is ok because that is how we get our feedback to improve but If you are worried about those people who always try to criticize you, just remember that they too are suffering from this perfection paralysis and that is why they start pointing out on your work without creating content of their own. Often times confidence can be the main reason behind this issue but I always feel that results give you confidence and expecting results without even starting is trying to be foolish.

Being well known about the issue, I looked out for solutions to overcome this perfection paralysis but trust me, there is no perfect or conventional solution to this other than you starting it out without a second thought.

So, next time when such questions wander you, just try to remember that it will get better only with the attempts and time but not by sitting worrying about the same. Never let those thoughts stop you from starting at least. Starting is always hard but the happiness in taking those little steps will give you strength and support to move forward along the way.

Thank me later if this post made you take that one step in starting something you wanted to or asking someone for a date 😛.

-with love