You're Not Perfect, Get Over It

Regardless of where you stand on the spectrum of procrastination, there’s one simple truth that will always hold true – perfectionism doesn’t actually accomplish anything. In fact, it can be downright harmful to both your happiness and productivity if you let it control you like it does so many other people. The solution? Learn to live with imperfect starts, and choose progress over perfection. Here’s how.

Why perfectionism is bad

There are many reasons why striving for perfection can be damaging. When we see ourselves as perfect, our sense of self-worth takes a hit if we mess up. We’re also likely to procrastinate because we don’t think anything less than perfection is good enough and leave tasks undone until it’s too late. And finally, striving for perfection may motivate us to take on more goals than we can reasonably achieve at one time.

How your brain responds to imperfect starts

When we are trying to learn a new skill and we make mistakes at first (or worse, fail entirely), our imperfect performance lights up a region of our brain called the anterior cingulate cortex. Scientists have long known that damage to ACC is associated with a variety of cognitive disorders—including depression and ADHD—and even predicts people’s risk for dementia decades later. But what if there was a way to transform one of our brain’s greatest liabilities into an advantage?

Start where you are

Starting your business where you are can be more manageable than starting it from scratch. Many times when we get a great idea in our heads, we start with I’m going to build it and they will come. However, it is important to understand that an idea alone will not make you a business owner. You need to work hard to make sure that your idea is something that people are willing to pay for.

Practice makes progress

The old saying practice makes perfect is a total lie. When you practice something, you'll become very good at it if you do it for long enough—but not perfect. Your first practice session will always be imperfect and that's a good thing because that means progress! We all know how much better we were at things when we started out as beginners; after years of honing our skills, improvement slows down but doesn't stop completely. Imperfect starts mean room for growth and opportunity to continue getting better.

Practicing is your first step toward learning

You don’t have to be a genius to succeed. Anyone can achieve success in any field if they work hard enough. How do I know? Because I’ve been doing it for a long time and so have many other successful people. When it comes to business—and sports, music or art—you don’t need a special gift to make it big; you just need to practice.

Learning something new takes practice

The most exciting thing about learning something new is that you know nothing about it. So don’t be afraid to make mistakes! The first time I made a sandwich on my own as a teenager, I had no idea how it was supposed to look or taste. And guess what? It was awful. But I got better at making sandwiches over time and now they are delicious. However, getting comfortable with imperfection means you have to fail at things—like making bad sandwiches—often before you master them.

Where do you start?

If you haven’t started your business idea yet, then where do you start? Decide on your reason for starting a business. Why do you want to start a company? Is it because of dissatisfaction with an existing company or industry? Do you love your product or service so much that you know it will be successful? Have you identified any market need that can’t be met by other businesses or products out there? Does anyone want what it is that you are about to offer?