Best Analogy I’ve Read to Overcome Obsession With Perfection
We’re all waiting for that perfect time. If it’s not the time that’s stopping us, it is the obsession with perfect ideas.
If you’ve had your ideas sorted, you’re waiting for the perfect work to go out.
I’ve seen people staring into the mirror and thinking to themselves they weren’t good enough. They think they’re not perfect.
I’ve had terrible problems because of my obsession with perfection. One of my best articles was in drafts for 6 months before I published it because I wanted it to be perfect.
I’ve lost opportunities with potential clients because I didn’t approach them, I wanted the timing and the pitch to be perfect.
This weird obsession with perfectionism creates anxiety that holds you back.
Either consciously or unconsciously we’re comparing things with what we think is ‘ideal’.
There’s one serious problem with ideal things. They aren’t realistic, and sometimes unattainable. And, they have nothing to do with true happiness. It is all just good advertising that has embedded the idea of ideal things.
Good advertising works on “It’s not right until I get that or until I get to such and such point”. Good advertising is about finding the pains and suggesting the ‘perfect solution for them.
Also, The ideal is limited. True perfection is limitless. It is always expanding.
Let me share an analogy with you that changed the way I looked at perfection. I read about this in the book The Practicing Mind by Thomas M. Sterner.
Have You Noticed A Flower?
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Photo by Wolfgang Hasselmann on Unsplash
Ask yourself: At what point in a flower’s life from seed to full bloom does it reach perfection?
Is it perfect when it is waiting to be plated in the ground?
Is it perfect when it is planted some inches below the ground?
It is perfect when it’s just peeking out from the earth?
It is perfect when it grows to a foot long?
It is perfect when it is ready to grow flowers?
Is it perfect when you can see it has developed the leaves well now and there is a small beautiful bud showing up?
It is perfect when it’s growing even more flowers growing and the flowers are blooming in beautiful colors?
Or, is it perfect when it has reached its full bloom?
And, yes, there comes a humble and quiet ending to her life. Back to the soil, where it came from.
Tell me, At what point was it perfect?
It is perfect every moment. Right from when it was softly placed into the earth to its energy in full bloom.
It is never imperfect. It is right there. In the moment, embracing the present.
You’re perfect. Every single moment.
This analogy helped me change my perspective about perfection, I hope it helps you too.