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People pleasing.
Procrastination.
Unrealistic expectations.
Anxiety.
Imposter syndrome.
Do any of these sound familiar to you at work? If the answer is yes, then you (or someone you know) might be dealing with perfectionism.
Author and political activist Anne Lamott once wrote “Perfectionism is the voice of the oppressor, the enemy of the people,” and studies show that 86% of employees believe that perfectionist expectations have impacted their career. Quite an enemy.
Perfectionism often gets in the way of progress, and many of us struggle with it in the workplace. Whether it’s a fear of failure, or genuinely wanting to excel at work, perfectionist habits ultimately tend to inhibit productivity and lead to burnout. Specifically, let’s take a look at how perfectionism might be inhibiting you at work.
DE-MOTIVATION
Perfectionism can de-motivate you by causing you to have to stare down impossible or unrealistic standards. It’s easy to sort of check out when faced with unreasonable standards, because you might sense that failure is unavoidable.
If you find yourself constantly lacking motivation due to a fear of failure, remember this motto:
Progress, not perfection.
Your work doesn’t have to be perfect (or even complete) for it to be great, useful, or impactful. Instead of starting with the goal of perfection in mind, start with the goal of progress: aim to do something that helps you, your team, or someone else make progress.
LACK OF FOLLOW-THROUGH
Inability or extreme difficulty to finish topics is often related to–you guessed it–perfectionism! Sometimes, you might find yourself perpetually tinkering with something that’s already good enough. Or maybe you can’t stop contemplating what to do next on a work project, and instead of picking a direction and following through, you just…keep contemplating…until you have the “perfect” solution.
This brand of perfectionism will greatly diminish your effectiveness at work because you wind up struggling to get anything done. If that’s you, I have another motto for you:
Done is better than perfect.
Most times, getting something done is better than getting it perfect. Why? Because a “good enough” but less than perfect product allows you and/or the people around you to make progress and have a real world impact. And perfect tends to be pretty unreachable anyway. At the very least, the outcome isn’t worth the investment. It takes too long or costs too much. Which leads me to my final point…
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FEELING LOST, STUCK, OR CONFUSED?
Getting a job in something you’re actually motivated to do is tough sometimes, especially if you aren’t really sure what that is. That’s a frustrating place to be, and I know because I’ve been there before.
If you’re there now, I can help you.
Come take the Career Compass Assessment and
- Address the frustration of knowing you have transferable skills, but not really knowing what they are exactly
- Understand exactly what’s causing you pain in your current job, and what’s standing in the way of having a career you really want
- Finally deal with your current career confusion that has you complaining about your job, but not doing anything about it
You’ll walk away with a personalized report detailing what your skills indicate about your career journey, and you’ll know what step you need to take next to get yourself in motion!
How it works: You’ll do a brief online assessment and then hop on a 45 minute 1 on 1 zoom session with me.
The Career Compass Assessment Program is currently being offered at $97!
At the end you will know:
- What transferable skills you ALREADY HAVE to offer that are currently in-demand
- Potential job fits that would actually energize you instead of drain you
- What steps you should take in the short-term to finally move you toward a job you’ll love
Don’t wait–the price is going up! Let’s get started!
Next Issue on June 8th: What’s Cultural Fit?
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