Hey, slob. You might be a perfectionist.

Are you a perfectionist? Is the reason for your chaos actually perfectionism?

Show notes: https://www.simplyconvivial.com/blog/slob-perfectionist/

Those who want all or nothing generally get nothing. 

I used to think I was not a perfectionist, because nothing I did was perfect. I was a slob, so how could I be a perfectionist?

If all-or-nothing perfectionism is our tendency, then we shouldn’t be surprised when we can’t get up off the couch. Why start when we know we won’t accomplish what we’d like?

Such perfectionism is debilitating, and it’s that debilitation that causes us to end up in chaos and discouragement that we can’t pull up out of.

So how do we, then, pull up out of it? How can we pull up out of ourselves?

Recover from perfectionism by practicing baby steps.
Perfectionism is the mother of boom and bust cycles: a spurt of energy and enthusiasm propels us forward, but goals give way to reality and, because we didn’t meet the unrealistic goals, we sputter to a halt and give up.

Baby steps are not glamorous, they don’t seem significant, but they lead to real, noticeable, tangible progress when we are content to stick with them.

When we feel resistance to doing what needs to be done, instead of either trying to grit our teeth and power through, we can make it simpler to start by reducing what we’re expecting from ourselves.

Perfectionism is false expectation. We envision the end we want, and if we know it won’t happen, we don’t begin. The best way out is to change what we envision, to take a humbler view of ourselves and our efforts, and submit to imperfect yet faithful next steps.