Is Perfectionism Sabotaging Your Success?
Valuable insights to procrastinate less, achieve more, and be happier with your output.
Perfectionism can be elusive. I didn’t know that I was a perfectionist even though all of the signs were there, including rigidity, increased headaches, impossibly high standards, and a sense of unhappiness no matter what I had achieved.
For example, it was a balmy September day in 2006 when I called my dad with news from the patio of a shared rental house. “Dad, I got a job at a news station, CNN of all places!”
“That’s some news!” my dad exclaimed.
But instead of being carefree and happy for this milestone, I was troubled, stressed, and agitated. How would I maintain the facade of being the perfect runner, cook, friend, and pet parent with this increased pressure? How could I do it all? Of course, I was happy to have a steady job, but it was a source of stress and another way for me to hone my perfectionism tendencies.
Looking back now, I feel for that 23-year-old who didn’t know the damage that she was doing to herself by insisting on being as perfect as possible, all of the time, and in everyone else’s eyes as much as her own.
