5 reasons why perfectionism is hurting your career

Perfectionism, that is, the desire to bring everything to perfection, is considered a positive quality. It is even used as an answer to the tricky question of the HR specialist “What are your shortcomings?”. Like, I can not stop, I strive to do everything perfectly. But in practice, this quality often becomes a flaw that interferes with both the business of the company and the person himself. But let the organization solve its own problems, and we will talk about how this hurts the career of an individual employee.

What's wrong with perfectionism

1. Increases stress levels

People who strive for perfection in everything do not really live in the fairy-tale Roseponie, where such a result is easy. They are fully aware that the ideal is difficult to achieve, and often impossible. Usually, with all the efforts, it turns out to be done very well and even brilliantly. Others may consider that this is the maximum possible. But the perfectionist himself sees where it was worth even straining. Therefore, for such people

typical high levels of stress and anxiety.

Sometimes stress can be useful if it is short-term and forces you to mobilize all efforts to do something important. But ongoing stress adversely affects the psychological state of a person, can lead to burnout. And it is very difficult to strive for career heights in this position.

And perfectionism provokes impostor syndrome. This is the belief that a person is not really as good as others think he is. He doesn't believe he deserves his success. It seems to him that the deception is about to be revealed and everyone will understand what he really is. And this also makes him constantly worried.

2. Reduces productivity

In the last paragraph, we talked about the successes of a perfectionist. And it may seem that due to this quality, a person always looks the best in the eyes of his superiors. But this is optional.

It often happens that such a person, in an attempt to achieve perfection, spends much more time on tasks than they deserve. At the same time, colleagues who have a simpler attitude to the results easily bypass him in terms of productivity.

The so-called Pareto Law is at work here - a rule named after the economist and sociologist Vilfredo Pareto. According to him, 20% of efforts give 80% of the result, and the remaining 80% of efforts - only 20% of the result. And if the task is completed by 80%, this is most often enough. Perhaps, if we invest even more effort, something will change, but not critically. Therefore, in the eyes of the authorities, a perfectionist may not look responsible and purposeful, but simply slow.

In addition, a person who strives for the ideal is easily discouraged if he encounters insoluble difficulties or simply understands that the result will be imperfect. Even if he suits those around him, but for a person such a development of events is perceived as a failure. Therefore, the employee loses motivation.

3. hinders development

A perfectionist strives for perfection, so he is characterized by a fear of mistakes. Which is logical: if you do something wrong, the ideal cannot be achieved. Therefore, it is difficult for him to take on new tasks. After all, you have to explore the unfamiliar, and in the process, mistakes are inevitable. And even getting to work after training can be difficult. The perfectionist thinks he doesn't know enough.

But if you don’t try new things, it’s impossible to develop, it’s endless marking time.

4. Makes it difficult to work in a team

Often a person extends his problem not only to himself, but also to others. In his opinion, not only should he strive for perfection, but also his Colleagues. And here there are several options. Someone will take on the role of being responsible for these frivolous people and will offer to make another million edits at three in the morning, because it will be better. And someone will fall into arrogance on the basis of the fact that he is not like that, not like these lazy people. Neither makes a person a darling of the group, so people may avoid interacting with him.

5. Creates delegation issues

In some positions, it is impossible to survive if you do not distribute responsibilities among, for example, subordinates, or if you take on a project that is designed for the team. But a perfectionist often lives by the principle “if you want to do something well, do it yourself.” But the week is still only seven days of 24 hours. And it is simply impossible to fit all the work into them. Therefore, a person either overworks terribly, or does not cope. And this is all the same stress, to which the probability is added that the task will not be completed on time.

How to deal with perfectionism

There is no magic pill that will cure the pursuit of perfection forever. This is work, during which you will have to constantly pull yourself up, have serious conversations with yourself. But there are some things you can try.

Acknowledge the Problem

This is the first step. Tell yourself, "I'm a perfectionist." It doesn't make you worse or better. It was formed in you not by itself, but under the influence of the events of your life.

Understand why it is so important for you to be perfect

The easiest way to do this is with the help of a psychologist or psychotherapist. But you can dig inside yourself and on your own. Being perfect is not only an end, but also a means. What do you get this way? The answer will help you understand whether it is necessary to act within this pattern. Maybe you're one of those kids who got a B on a test and was like, "Why not a five?" when everyone else got a B. And now it's time to deal with the inner critic who speaks in the voice of parents. With negative attitudes too can work.

Rethink your attitude towards mistakes

Mistake is not a failure or collapse of the whole life, it is simply something inevitable in the process of gaining experience. For example, few learned to ride on a bike without a single fall. And this is part of what eventually made it possible to finally go.

Learn to enjoy the process

Focusing on the ideal result prevents you from enjoying what you are doing right now. But any big business consists of small tasks.

Develop a different scale for assessing the result

A perfectionist has two assessments: either the task is done perfectly, or poorly. But here it is more correct to speak of a gradient from nothing done to the ideal. And here again we recall the Pareto law: 80% is often enough, and sometimes this is not required. The perfectionist sets the bar high for himself.

To evaluate the success of a task, it is sometimes possible to rely on formal requirements or external evaluations. For example, in good media, there is usually a redaction policy that allows you to evaluate the text. And the author can check whether the material corresponds to it. And he also has an editor who gives feedback and points out shortcomings. In other areas, these may be terms of reference, regulations, benchmarks, and so on. Of course, a perfectionist will strive to do more. But just good is already a worthy result.