3 sentences I use to harness my perfectionism for good (part 1)
Not to get rid of it! Just to make good use of it :)
I’m someone who likes to do things really, really well…
…and someone who gets pretty annoyed or stressed out when I feel like I’m NOT doing things really, really well.
You can call this trait “perfectionism” (which has more of a pejorative tone to it).
Or you can call it “just a feature of my personality” (which is a more neutral way of putting it).
I actually don’t think this is a negative OR a positive trait about me.
I think it’s just…a trait. Just a tendency that I happen to have.
A tendency that can be a strength OR a weakness, depending on how I deploy it.
So over the next 3 days, I’m going to give you 3 sentences I use to harness my perfectionism for good :)
Here’s sentence #1—
Perfection is a direction.
Think about an activity that you enjoy just for the sake of it.
One of those activities, for me, is crochet.
In fact, here’s a scarf I’ve been working on recently :)
Here are all the things I enjoy about crocheting:
Deciding on a project to work on
Deciding which yarn to use
Looking at different patterns
Learning new stitches (this one is called the basketweave stitch :)
Making the project, stitch by stitch
And here’s the one thing I actually enjoy the least:
Finishing the project
Obviously, I’m glad that I’ve finished a project and can send it off to its recipient.
But honestly, I also feel kind of empty and bored when I finish a crochet project.
Because now the fun part is over!
And after a few minutes of being proud…I’m already on the hunt for the next project.
To me, crochet is a direction, not a destination.
I don’t want to be DONE with all my crochet projects.
(That’s seeing it as a destination.)
I want to BE crocheting.
(That’s seeing it as a direction.)
And you definitely have activities like this in your life too!
If you love golf, you don’t want to be DONE golfing.
You don’t rush through all the holes as quickly as possible so you can get home already.
If you love golf, you want to BE golfing.
You want to be on the course, scoping things out, choosing which club to use, and deciding how to make your swing.
And once you’re done, your main question is: When can we go again?
If you love doing puzzles, you don’t want to be DONE with all your puzzles.
You don’t try to get each one done as fast as possible so you can get it out of the way.
If you love doing puzzles, you want to BE working on a puzzle.
You want to be sorting through the pieces and working on the edges first and then going section by section until it’s done.
And once you’re done, your main question is: Where’s the next one?
This is why Marie Kondo loves mess, even though she’s the queen of tidying up.
This is why serial entrepreneurs keep starting businesses, even when they’ve made tons of money.
This is why authors keep writing books, even when they’ve had a smash hit.
All of them see what they do as a direction, not a destination.
Because this viewpoint doesn’t just apply to your hobbies.
Bringing that mindset to your work is one of the most powerful things you can do for your career.
Now let’s apply this to your and my love of doing things really, really well :)
One way to harness that perfectionism for good…
Is to see perfection as a direction, not a destination.
What if, rather than focusing on being DONE making something perfect…
You focus on the learning and tinkering and studying and nerding out that it takes to BE PERFECTING something, bit by bit?
And you focus on the fun of going back into the studio / the lab / the workstation every day to just mess around and play with it a little bit more?
What if the goal isn’t to have the perfect meeting today…
But rather to always be tinkering and learning and understanding what it takes to have a great meeting, today, tomorrow, and every day?
What if the goal isn’t to create the perfect marketing strategy today…
But rather to always be tinkering and learning and understanding what it takes to do great marketing, today, tomorrow, and every day?
What if the goal isn’t to make the perfect investment decision today…
But rather to always be tinkering and learning and understanding what it takes to make great investments, today, tomorrow, and every day?
What if the goal isn’t to be the perfect parent today…
But rather to always be tinkering and learning and understanding what it takes to be a great parent, today, tomorrow, and every day?
What if your identity isn’t The Perfect One, who nails it flawlessly every single time?
But rather, your identity is The Nerd, The Tinkerer, The Craftsperson…
…Who’s always in there, messing around and figuring out how to make it better?
That’s Sentence #1 I use to harness my perfectionism for good.
Perfection is a direction.
Stay tuned for Sentence #2, coming up tomorrow :)
My goal as a coach isn’t to “fix you.” (Because, my friend, you’re not broken.)
My goal as a coach is to help you harness who you are in order to create the life that you want.
Harnessing your perfectionism is just one example.
What if every single thing that you think is a flaw…
…is actually a just strength that needs to be pointed in the right direction?
Come talk to me and let’s talk about how we can do that redirection together :)
There are two ways you can work with me.
You can be one of my private one-on-one clients.
Book a free consult to come talk to me about how we can work together.
Or you can join my course & coaching program when it opens shortly.
Join the waitlist today :)
Sentence #2 ➡️
What my clients have to say…
“I didn't know what coaching was, and the only time I had ever heard of a life coach is when people are having a midlife crisis.
I was afraid coaching was going to be weird or fluffy.
That concern went away completely after our very first conversation, because in our very first conversation, I felt more validated and heard and understood than I ever had with any other professionally trained therapist.
And I felt like I had a better understanding of how we were going to work through everything I was facing, than I ever had gotten from any other type of professional support.
So that concern went away literally from session number one.”
—Client | Head of Business Development at MedTech Company
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