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Why perfectionism is dangerous and how to deal with it
Perfectionism is a controversial phenomenon. On the one hand, it makes us work harder and avoid stupid mistakes that ruin promising projects. On the other hand, perfectionism hinders productivity, slows down work, and leads to frustration.
In this article, we will tell you what perfectionism is fraught with in the management environment and how to distinguish between creative and destructive perfectionism.
Perfectionism symptoms
Perfectionism is born with the best of intentions. Managers take responsibility for a department or an entire company and achieve quality work.
If perfectionism goes beyond reasonable limits, it ruins the business - employees lose motivation, and the company misses out on new opportunities.
A typical example of perfectionism is re-checking data received from subordinates or colleagues. In some areas - medicine, aviation, engineering - this is vital. In many other industries, this approach only increases the time spent, but has little effect on the result. Achieving perfection where it is not needed is expensive and pointless.
David Dotlich, President of Pivet Leadership Consulting Company, and Peter Keiro, Leading Business Consultant, in The Dark Side of Power. Leadership behaviors that can cost careers and businesses” called perfectionism one of the factors that can undermine the career of a top manager.
The authors identified five symptoms that can be used to diagnose perfectionism in the work of a manager.
A reluctance to delegate is one of the clearest signs of perfectionism. The perfectionist avoids delegation because he is confident that no one will do the job as well as himself. The perfectionist is afraid that employees will not be vigilant, attentive, accurate and will not be able to analyze the situation from different angles.
Emphasis on form instead of content. A perfectionist will not argue that a well-designed report is better than a high-quality and informative one. However, he tends to spend an inadequate amount of time to put on the outer gloss.
The specifics of the work of top managers partly explains their craving for non-core activities. Most executives work on long-term projects, so sometimes they enjoy doing something that brings immediate results, be it office decor or report formatting. But this should not become a habit.
Lack of attention to people. Some perfectionists get stuck in process management. They concentrate on introducing new methodologies, procedures and other technical aspects, forgetting to establish relationships with employees. Managing people is much more difficult than managing processes. It takes more time and effort. If you distance yourself from people and find an outlet in improving your routines and working methods, this is a bad sign.
Ignoring the obvious. If you are obsessed with the little things, new business trends pass you by. A good manager needs to notice changes in the market - from the emergence of new players to the introduction of advanced technologies - and respond to them with an appropriate strategy.
Closed in a vicious circle. When a perfectionist fails, he gets stressed. But stress only exacerbates perfectionist tendencies. To cope with it, the perfectionist begins to do the job even more thoroughly. In practice, this fosters anxiety and worsens the results, since being perfect is very difficult, almost impossible.
The consequences of perfectionism
You cannot defeat perfectionism until you understand its consequences for your career and business. Perfectionism forces you to spend more time refining small details, but this is not its biggest drawback. The rest of the consequences are much more dangerous.
Emotional burnout. Overexertion, sleep problems, loss of joy at work - the symptoms of emotional burnout inevitably overtake a perfectionist leader. You ruin your health and jeopardize your career - in a state of stress, the likelihood of making the wrong decision increases.
Missed opportunities. Other company managers respond to market changes faster than you do. Competitors are introducing products or ideas that you are just working on. Predictable events take you by surprise. As long as you double-check the work of your subordinates, you are missing out on an opportunity to grow the company and increase its value.
Micromanagement. If you control every step of your subordinates, it undermines their motivation and work efficiency. Same problem with avoiding delegation. If your people don't get interesting new tasks, work turns into a series of mechanical operations.
Healthy alternative
To avoid falling prey to perfectionism, you need to learn to distinguish high standards from obsessive pursuit of excellence.
Organizational Behavior Professor Tal Ben-Shahar in The Perfectionist Paradox separates two concepts: perfectionism and optimalism.
The perfectionist sets unattainable goals and determines his value only in terms of success. He denies reality and strives for an ideal life. This approach often leads to disappointment in life and nervous disorders.
Optimalism is a healthy alternative to perfectionism. The Optimalist accepts reality as it is. He realizes that time, money and other resources are limited. Therefore, the Optimalist is trying to live not an ideal life, but the best possible one.
Tal Ben-Shahar identifies three main parameters that distinguish the Optimalist from the Perfectionist. Working on yourself in these areas will help you gradually move to the side of optimalism.
Attitude towards failure
The perfectionist strives for an ideal life, so there is no place for failure in his picture of the world. Every failure that happens sooner or later is perceived by the perfectionist as a great tragedy and a sign of failure.
In the future, this attitude towards failure forms a persistent fear of error. The perfectionist only agrees to participate in activities where success is guaranteed. Fear of failure prevents him from taking on difficult tasks and, as a result, inhibits development.
The Optimalist views failure differently. Failures also upset him, but the Optimalist knows that failure is a natural part of a fulfilling life. Failures help the Optimalist to better assess his abilities and identify areas for work on himself.
Embracing emotion
The perfectionist thinks that happy people don't experience negative emotions. His fictional ideal life is filled with extremely positive feelings.
When negative emotions nevertheless overtake a perfectionist, he drives away the worries and scolds himself for them. The perfectionist is sure that there shouldn't be such emotions. But suppressing emotions only leads to increased anxiety and discomfort.
The Optimalist does not believe that he should constantly glow with happiness. He takes negative emotions naturally. The Optimalist allows himself to be angry and sad if the circumstances are such. The Optimalist does not extrapolate current emotions for life, so a momentary outburst of anger or sadness does not turn him into an unbalanced or depressed person.
Recognition of success
The perfectionist, like the optimalist, strives for success. But the perfectionist sets himself unattainable goals, so he deliberately denies the possibility of success and condemns himself to dissatisfaction with life.
Whatever heights the perfectionist reaches, he will always be dissatisfied.
Also, a perfectionist cannot live in peace if someone has achieved more than him. The perfectionist refuses to acknowledge the limitations of his time and physical resources. He wants to be ideal in all areas of life.
Optimists are aware of the imperfections of the real world. They set high, yet achievable goals. The Optimalist does not try to surpass everyone else in the world.
“Be the best version of yourself” is the motto of the true Optimist.
It is this attitude that allows Optimalists to lead life at a high level, experiencing satisfaction from their own accomplishments, rather than disappointment with what has not yet been achieved.
Becoming Optimalists
There is a fine line between perfectionism and optimalism, but big differences in results.
If the first is associated with endless torment and self-abasement, then the second leads to a happy, fulfilled life.
Be aware of limited resources. Each of us doesn't have much time. It is unwise to waste it on the continuous improvement of unnecessary things. Better do what really matters.
Don't expect perfect conditions. Perfectionism prevents companies from seizing new opportunities and inhibits creative development. Take action now and get the best out of your current constraints.
Don't be afraid of failure. Think of failure as a natural part of life. Learn the lessons and move on. Failure does not mean that you are a bad leader.
Accept your emotions. Happy people who constantly rejoice and smile are just a myth. In fact, negative emotions are an integral part of human life. Everyone experiences unpleasant feelings from time to time, do not blame yourself for them.
Appreciate success. Set realistic goals and enjoy your accomplishments. Do not focus on those who have achieved more - grow professionally in relation to yourself.
Author unknown
Perfectionism is a controversial phenomenon. On the one hand, it makes us work harder and avoid stupid mistakes that ruin promising projects. On the other hand, perfectionism hinders productivity, slows down work, and leads to frustration.
In this article, we will tell you what perfectionism is fraught with in the management environment and how to distinguish between creative and destructive perfectionism.
Perfectionism symptoms
Perfectionism is born with the best of intentions. Managers take responsibility for a department or an entire company and achieve quality work.
If perfectionism goes beyond reasonable limits, it ruins the business - employees lose motivation, and the company misses out on new opportunities.
A typical example of perfectionism is re-checking data received from subordinates or colleagues. In some areas - medicine, aviation, engineering - this is vital. In many other industries, this approach only increases the time spent, but has little effect on the result. Achieving perfection where it is not needed is expensive and pointless.
David Dotlich, President of Pivet Leadership Consulting Company, and Peter Keiro, Leading Business Consultant, in The Dark Side of Power. Leadership behaviors that can cost careers and businesses” called perfectionism one of the factors that can undermine the career of a top manager.
The authors identified five symptoms that can be used to diagnose perfectionism in the work of a manager.
A reluctance to delegate is one of the clearest signs of perfectionism. The perfectionist avoids delegation because he is confident that no one will do the job as well as himself. The perfectionist is afraid that employees will not be vigilant, attentive, accurate and will not be able to analyze the situation from different angles.
Emphasis on form instead of content. A perfectionist will not argue that a well-designed report is better than a high-quality and informative one. However, he tends to spend an inadequate amount of time to put on the outer gloss.
The specifics of the work of top managers partly explains their craving for non-core activities. Most executives work on long-term projects, so sometimes they enjoy doing something that brings immediate results, be it office decor or report formatting. But this should not become a habit.
Lack of attention to people. Some perfectionists get stuck in process management. They concentrate on introducing new methodologies, procedures and other technical aspects, forgetting to establish relationships with employees. Managing people is much more difficult than managing processes. It takes more time and effort. If you distance yourself from people and find an outlet in improving your routines and working methods, this is a bad sign.
Ignoring the obvious. If you are obsessed with the little things, new business trends pass you by. A good manager needs to notice changes in the market - from the emergence of new players to the introduction of advanced technologies - and respond to them with an appropriate strategy.
Closed in a vicious circle. When a perfectionist fails, he gets stressed. But stress only exacerbates perfectionist tendencies. To cope with it, the perfectionist begins to do the job even more thoroughly. In practice, this fosters anxiety and worsens the results, since being perfect is very difficult, almost impossible.
The consequences of perfectionism
You cannot defeat perfectionism until you understand its consequences for your career and business. Perfectionism forces you to spend more time refining small details, but this is not its biggest drawback. The rest of the consequences are much more dangerous.
Emotional burnout. Overexertion, sleep problems, loss of joy at work - the symptoms of emotional burnout inevitably overtake a perfectionist leader. You ruin your health and jeopardize your career - in a state of stress, the likelihood of making the wrong decision increases.
Missed opportunities. Other company managers respond to market changes faster than you do. Competitors are introducing products or ideas that you are just working on. Predictable events take you by surprise. As long as you double-check the work of your subordinates, you are missing out on an opportunity to grow the company and increase its value.
Micromanagement. If you control every step of your subordinates, it undermines their motivation and work efficiency. Same problem with avoiding delegation. If your people don't get interesting new tasks, work turns into a series of mechanical operations.
Healthy alternative
To avoid falling prey to perfectionism, you need to learn to distinguish high standards from obsessive pursuit of excellence.
Organizational Behavior Professor Tal Ben-Shahar in The Perfectionist Paradox separates two concepts: perfectionism and optimalism.
The perfectionist sets unattainable goals and determines his value only in terms of success. He denies reality and strives for an ideal life. This approach often leads to disappointment in life and nervous disorders.
Optimalism is a healthy alternative to perfectionism. The Optimalist accepts reality as it is. He realizes that time, money and other resources are limited. Therefore, the Optimalist is trying to live not an ideal life, but the best possible one.
Tal Ben-Shahar identifies three main parameters that distinguish the Optimalist from the Perfectionist. Working on yourself in these areas will help you gradually move to the side of optimalism.
Attitude towards failure
The perfectionist strives for an ideal life, so there is no place for failure in his picture of the world. Every failure that happens sooner or later is perceived by the perfectionist as a great tragedy and a sign of failure.
In the future, this attitude towards failure forms a persistent fear of error. The perfectionist only agrees to participate in activities where success is guaranteed. Fear of failure prevents him from taking on difficult tasks and, as a result, inhibits development.
The Optimalist views failure differently. Failures also upset him, but the Optimalist knows that failure is a natural part of a fulfilling life. Failures help the Optimalist to better assess his abilities and identify areas for work on himself.
Embracing emotion
The perfectionist thinks that happy people don't experience negative emotions. His fictional ideal life is filled with extremely positive feelings.
When negative emotions nevertheless overtake a perfectionist, he drives away the worries and scolds himself for them. The perfectionist is sure that there shouldn't be such emotions. But suppressing emotions only leads to increased anxiety and discomfort.
The Optimalist does not believe that he should constantly glow with happiness. He takes negative emotions naturally. The Optimalist allows himself to be angry and sad if the circumstances are such. The Optimalist does not extrapolate current emotions for life, so a momentary outburst of anger or sadness does not turn him into an unbalanced or depressed person.
Recognition of success
The perfectionist, like the optimalist, strives for success. But the perfectionist sets himself unattainable goals, so he deliberately denies the possibility of success and condemns himself to dissatisfaction with life.
Whatever heights the perfectionist reaches, he will always be dissatisfied.
Also, a perfectionist cannot live in peace if someone has achieved more than him. The perfectionist refuses to acknowledge the limitations of his time and physical resources. He wants to be ideal in all areas of life.
Optimists are aware of the imperfections of the real world. They set high, yet achievable goals. The Optimalist does not try to surpass everyone else in the world.
“Be the best version of yourself” is the motto of the true Optimist.
It is this attitude that allows Optimalists to lead life at a high level, experiencing satisfaction from their own accomplishments, rather than disappointment with what has not yet been achieved.
Becoming Optimalists
There is a fine line between perfectionism and optimalism, but big differences in results.
If the first is associated with endless torment and self-abasement, then the second leads to a happy, fulfilled life.
Be aware of limited resources. Each of us doesn't have much time. It is unwise to waste it on the continuous improvement of unnecessary things. Better do what really matters.
Don't expect perfect conditions. Perfectionism prevents companies from seizing new opportunities and inhibits creative development. Take action now and get the best out of your current constraints.
Don't be afraid of failure. Think of failure as a natural part of life. Learn the lessons and move on. Failure does not mean that you are a bad leader.
Accept your emotions. Happy people who constantly rejoice and smile are just a myth. In fact, negative emotions are an integral part of human life. Everyone experiences unpleasant feelings from time to time, do not blame yourself for them.
Appreciate success. Set realistic goals and enjoy your accomplishments. Do not focus on those who have achieved more - grow professionally in relation to yourself.
Author unknown
