"Perfectionism is not the same thing as striving to be your best. Perfectionism is the belief that if we live perfect, look perfect and act perfect, we can minimize or avoid the pain of blame, judgement and shame."
- Brene Brown
I'm sure all of us have dealt with the struggle of trying to be perfect, or do something the perfect way at one point or another in our lives. I love this definition of perfectionism from Brene Brown; perfectionism is not the same thing as striving to be your best.
In fact, perfectionism is something that puts a weight on your shoulders and really prevents you from living your life to the fullest.
If you are constantly obsessing over one thing, and constantly working on it to become more and more perfect, you never get to the second thing, the second step. You never see that it is just a small piece of the grander picture.
It all comes down to perspective. Who told you what was perfect in the first place? How was it defined, and who said that it was the right way? We tend to live our lives to meet the ideals of others. We try to live "perfectly" in order to please them and to avoid the blame, judgement and shame.
I wanted to discuss this topic of perfectionism today, because contrary to what a lot of us believe, it isn't a good thing. Yes, do a great job and try to be your best and do your best. But do it, and move on. Don't keep trying to be perfect because if you live that way you won't really be living your life.