Exploring Perspectives & Mindset
Is it Good Enough?
A Look at Perfection, What’s Good, and Being Enough
I have a touch of a perfection streak. Not always, but often enough to get in the way some times. When I was a carpenter, I became acutely aware of the dynamic between my desire to have my work be spot on and my clients’ desires for efficient, swift work. Most people never actually look at the trim in a house and don’t care if the trim behind the toilet was crafted with the care and precision of a Renaissance sculptor. They want it done quickly, without breaking their bank, so they can put their lives back in order.
I had been trying to do the very best I could. To have each thing I created serve as representation of who I hoped I might be. The work, and I, was tedious and tense. It wasn’t working out well for me. Instead of, “Is this the best I am capable of?,” I had to start asking myself some new questions:
Is this good enough?
At first glance this might appear to be a perspective of apathy or indifference, and perhaps if left at that face value, it might be.
But when I let it open and evolve further, things really shifted:
Is it good? Is that enough?
