Perfectionism… or Paralyzing Fear of Failure?

Perfectionism is a silly excuse for never finishing anything.

Most people use it as a disguised form of procrastination.

* Waiting to apply for that perfect job until they get their resume just right… Only to lose that job to someone else with a ‘good enough’ resume.

* Or waiting to ask that one person out on a date… Only to watch them get swept off their feet by someone else who wasn’t waiting for the perfect time or the perfect thing to say.

* Or holding off on launching that new business until everything was perfectly in place… Only to have someone more motivated and action-oriented launch the exact same business and steal all the glory and success.

It seems like the only thing “perfectionists” ever get perfect is the ability to watch other people succeed.

…And then complain about it.

I got really good at that myself, in my younger days, before I had an important realization:

Those people who were stepping over me to take all the things I wanted in life didn’t give a damn about being perfect.

They weren’t sitting around waiting for the stars and planets to align.

They weren’t waiting for permission to take action.

No…

They understood that “good enough” efforts are usually more than enough to get the job done.

Especially if you take action fast, and get there before the so called “perfectionists.”

You can always improve as you go.

You *will* make mistakes and people *will* criticize you.

But, you keep your eye on the prize, and you adjust your course, and then…

You can keep moving forward and keep getting better… *as you go.*

Things will never be perfect.

You’ll never be perfect.

But, when you simply embrace that truth, most people finally see their perfectionism what it really was…

…Fear of failure.

…Fear of not measuring up.

…Fear of being “not enough.”

You’ll also start to notice that the people criticizing you are usually just the other “perfectionists” anyway.

They’re sitting around waiting for the perfect time or the perfect circumstances.

Because they’re terrified that they’ll fail otherwise.

And it really bothers them when other people let go of that fear and take action, because it draws attention to their own inaction.

Because their criticisms are just their own disguised frustrations over the fact that you’re taking action, getting things done, making it look easy, and… they aren’t.

So…

What things have you been putting off until the stars are perfectly aligned in your favor?

More importantly, how will your life look in 5 years if you keep putting it off?

And how much better will your life look like 5…10…15 years from now if you just said “screw it” and let go of that fear of not being perfect and just got started… right now?