Overcoming Perfectionism: How to Embrace Imperfection and Find More Peace and Acceptance

Perfectionism is an addiction that impacts our lives in different ways.

It's not always easy to overcome perfectionism, but it's important to take the first steps in your recovery. Here's how I overcame mine.

Perfectionism impacts me every day. It makes it hard to find joy in life because everything feels like a huge chore. Perfectionism impacts my productivity by making me avoid the things I want to do, while forcing me to focus on what I need to do.

When you feel like you can't go on, remember that this is a symptom, not the root cause. This happens to everyone who deals with perfectionism.

Here's how I overcame perfectionism:

STEP 1: Identify Your Reasons for Being Perfect

Perfectionists often don't realize the impact their behavior has on others because they become so obsessed with being perfect. When you analyze your reasons, you can find where they're coming from.

I started to identify the following types of perfectionism:

Cultural - We all have ideas about what we think people should look like, act like, or do.

Physical - We spend a lot of time and effort making sure our appearance is perfect.

Hobbyist - Perfecting one aspect of life becomes a bigger priority than other aspects.

Emotional - It's hard to focus on any part of life because we feel like we have to have all the answers.

Social - We feel like we have to perform well to get praise and validation.

Financial - We obsess over the cost of our clothes, home, and cars.

Personal - We focus too much time and attention on how we appear to other people.

STEP 2: Set Realistic Goals and Stick to Them

One of the first steps to overcoming perfectionism is setting realistic goals. When you set these goals, you can make them more attainable.

I decided to stop focusing on my weight and instead focused on my lifestyle. When you set goals, you can tell yourself "This isn't going to happen until ______"

So, let's say that your goal is to lose 25 pounds in 12 weeks. If you don't reach this goal within 12 weeks, then you can start working on your next goal.

Your new goal might be to lose 25 pounds over 12 months. If you don't meet this goal, you can keep going.

If you set a goal that seems too big, you'll never accomplish it. Your goals should be attainable. If you set them too high, you'll put off getting them done.

STEP 3: Start Small and Incrementally Improve

Many people start by taking huge leaps, but you won't get very far if you do this. Instead, you can start by making incremental improvements.

When you start by working on something small, you don't have to worry about getting it right. Instead, you can focus on taking baby steps and being successful at them.