When I think back over my own experience, one of the things that has stood between me and finishing (or even starting) has been perfection. Whether it was planting a garden or re-finishing a piece of furniture or even posting to this blog or having a much-needed conversation with a loved one, perfection would rise up as an unattainable goal and would keep me from moving forward. I was frozen in place.
I would want to wait until “the time was just right” or until I had just the right tools or just the right place to do the project or (pathetically) until I could get to Starbucks so I could write. The problem is, of course, that very rarely are the conditions ever perfect. And certainly we’ll never get to the place where the results of our projects are guaranteed to be perfect. There is no perfect time. There is no perfect place. There are no perfect tools or perfect people.
Our desire for perfect, while worthy, sometimes can keep us from doing what needs to be done. Take the pressure of PERFECT out of the equation. Instead, focus on giving it your best effort. Work with excellence and integrity. Perfection will take care of itself. Then…get started! Just get into it and see where it leads.
Think about it. How many of our best adventures began without knowing the destination?
Go.
Michael, I once heard that the perfect is the enemy of the good. To me this is another way of saying that we don’t get started on many good projects because of our desire for perfection. I really liked the way you put it, “Instead, focus on giving it your best effort. Work with excellence and integrity.” If we would just get started and give it our best effort we would accomplish so much more. Thanks for sharing.