“The best is the enemy of the good.” – Voltaire
“Better a diamond with a flaw than a pebble without.” – Confucious
“Striving to better, oft we mar what’s well.” – Shakespeare
I’m a perfectionist. An enneagram type 1. It comes with its pros and cons – pros being that I am diligent and deliberious in most that I do. A con being that I procrastinate things that I know I’m not good at out of fear of failure.
I received constructive professional feedback almost a year ago, and I’m revisiting it today because, despite constant attempts to de-clutter my life, I still struggle to find time to do all the things that I want to do. When I don’t think I can do something well, or in its entireity, I tend to avoid doing it altogether, or even worse, quit.
When it comes to journaling my thoughts, which is what I do here, perfection in my mind looks like a well-researched, long article that is thought provoking and inspirational; yet, today I’m able to see that there’s something special about the short post too. It’s here, it’s progress, it’s done. Check.
I encourage you to complete a small task today as a reminder that small progress is important too. Whether it’s making your bed, taking out the trash, going back to the gym for the first time in a while, or re-visiting the “draft posts” folder for this blog, which currently has over 35 un-published, incomplete thoughts… Yikes!! Small steps can make a big difference. So here’s to that.
The lofty goals we set for ourselves are important, but when they become overwhelming or seem too distant, focusing on the small things can be the change in perspective that we need to overcome and move forward.
jk