Beating Vacation Guilt
Perfectionism led me to feel guilty requesting time off work and mentally criticize my coworkers for being out of the office
I am a perfectionist. I had an idea of this already. Yet, I have been surprised at how many things in the workplace have bothered me in recent months. I started realizing I could have a perfectionism problem when I got upset when things don’t go as well as I hoped on a project or presentation. I also began to take note of my self-talk surrounding punctuality and taking vacations and days off. When I started mulling over technical errors (some beyond my control) and feeling near burnout with no days off in sight, I started to see this would not be a sustainable pattern. I realized these situations presented some problem areas that I needed to work through to make work enjoyable again.
“Perfectionism is the belief that if we do things perfectly and look perfect, we can minimize or avoid the pain of blame, judgement, and shame. It is about trying to earn approval. Perfectionism is not the key to success. The fear of failing, making mistakes, not meeting people’s expectations, and being…
