Why striving for perfection spells ruin for entrepreneurs. By Ryan Robinson Updated September 07, 2016 Don't ...
Why striving for perfection spells ruin for entrepreneurs.
Updated
September 07, 2016
Don't
get me wrong, striving for perfection can afford you a lot of great
perks.
It
can lead to immense financial rewards, career achievement, and so
much more. However, placing that much pressure on yourself can also
expose you to a lot of perils, that more often than not, lead to an
eventual crash.
That
being said, perfectionism is something I've personally battled
against for years. First up, here are the ways in which
perfectionism can occasionally be a good thing, especially
for freelancers and
entrepreneurs.
Some
of the most inspiring human achievements in science, politics,
business, sports and the arts were accomplished by perfectionists.
Think
of Tiger Woods, Margaret Thatcher, and Steve Jobs. Leonardo da Vinci
and Madonna. Who wouldn’t want to be considered among the ranks of
these top performers? Their unrelenting drive for flawless
excellence enabled them to achieve remarkable feats that are
(rightfully) nearly impossible to match:
- Tiger Woods’ record-breaking career includes years of being the top and highest-paid athlete in golf.
- Nicknamed the “Iron Lady,” Margaret Thatcher was the first woman elected as the British Prime Minister. She held the office for the longest tenure in the 20th century, and is ranked among the greatest Britons who ever lived.
- Steve Jobs radically changed the world of computing, mobile phones, and personal technology. He played a major role in our feverish addiction to new technological advancement.
- A global cultural icon, Madonna is currently the best-selling female recording artist of all time and has been cited as the most influential by many music critics.
- Artist, scientist, inventor and visionary, Leonardo da Vinci embodies the idea of “genius” more than most people who've lived in recent history.
So,
what do these extraordinary personalities have in common?
Well,
for one thing, the quality of their life’s work is certainly
nothing short of incredible.
Their
personal dedication to achievement, excellence, and improving the
way they saw the world, their endless strive for perfectionism, is
what has allowed them to radically change their industries. Without
that innate drive, it's questionable whether or not they would've
risen to the challenges they faced.
But is perfectionism a good idea in business?
Shifting
gears, the most simple way to answer this question, is NO.
And
I’m hardly alone in this conclusion. Psychologists
consider perfectionism a disorder,
while prominent business thinkers strongly discourage entrepreneurs
from even trying to be perfect.
Why?
Let’s take Steve Jobs as a case in point. I've frequently
covered this
incredible business leader, design thinker, and technology innovator
here. In most of what I research and write about him, I've
highlighted his intense perfectionism, while objectively looking at
both its positive and negative effects on his achievements.
Because
Jobs rigorously pursued perfection, he implemented policies and made
decisions that adhere to impossibly high standards, especially for
others to be measured against. For instance, he required teams
during Apple's early years to seek his approval on every single
detail of Macintosh computers, which unnecessarily prolonged
development time. He did not hesitate to fire talented employees for
ignoring his design aesthetics. He dumped nearly-completed projects
that failed to meet his standards of elegance.
While
Jobs' drive towards perfection helped create some of the world's
most beautiful and intuitive products, it also caused significant
friction with the people he worked with.
He
was ousted
from Apple in
1985. He came back in 1997 aiming to bring the company back to
profitability by summarily terminating a number of projects, which
of course terrorized just about everyone in the company. Only once
he managed to rein in his acute perfectionism, was he able to
transform Apple into one of the world's most valuable brands.
Yet
even with a tale as illuminating as this one, people
still misguidedly value perfectionism.
In
the United States, our culture is driven by perfectionist
undertones. Many parents demand it from their kids, while
stiff-necked managers continue to drive away employees with
unreasonable performance standards.
I'll
never give a green light to mediocrity, but I strongly believe that
excellence does not require perfection. In the world of business,
perfection will more likely inhibit your chances of success, than
take you there.
So,
if you continue down the often destructive path to perfectionism,
expect to deal with these massive issues throughout your life.
1. Your expectations will be unrealistic and nearly impossible to meet.
One documented
case of perfectionism is
that of Jared Kant who, as a kid at school, was compelled to always
erase a whole sentence if there's a mistake in one word. Jared often
went to great lengths (erasing entire essays and tests) just to get
rid of even the slightest mistake. Similarly, if you insist on
striving to create
a product that's
utterly perfect, then you'll be saddled with a litany of demanding
features that your team will need to develop. The concept of
a minimum
viable product (MVP)
won't even appeal to your demanding sensibilities.
2. You'll be exposed to excessive levels of stress.
Because
your benchmarks for success are unreasonably high, life basically
becomes a ground fight between you and the stress you're placing
yourself under. You'll be exerting so much effort at perfecting even
the non-essentials, that finding opportunities to relax and get
refreshed becomes non-existent. There's no doubt about it, you'll
eventually burn out and the lows will be much lower.
3. Your creativity will run dry.
High
performance requires a lot of work. Perfection takes much more. If
delivering high-quality results in your business already takes a
considerable toll on your creative energy, then a dogged quest for
perfection can only bleed you dry.
4. You risk damaging your health.
In
some cases, perfectionism is recognized to be a psychological issue.
But, it's often forgotten how much it can also endanger your
physical well-being. Just imagine what hours of lost sleep and
missed meals can do to your body over time. You'll certainly see the
potential physical damage perfectionism can inflict upon your
health.
5. You'll waste precious time and opportunities.
This
is a major reason experts dissuade entrepreneurs from ever becoming
perfectionists. You'll never get things done on time. You'll spend
too much time planning and perfecting a product or feature, before
launching it. My advice is to always launch
even before you feel ready because
that's the only way you can gather valuable feedback that will help
you improve your product. Otherwise, you'll be less productive
trying to make everything absolutely perfect. To cope with my own
perfectionism tendencies, I developed my own productivity system
called, the Just
Say "No" Time Management System for
entrepreneurs.
6. You'll be crushed when you fail.
Because
perfectionists set extremely high standards for themselves, the risk
of massive failures is equally as high. Pamela
Sue Edwards was
a talented cellist and a champion distance runner. She was
co-valedictorian in high school and graduated magna cum laude in
college. Sadly, at the age of 24, this gifted young lady ended up
taking her own life because of all the pressure she felt to continue
achieving more and more.
7. You won't be open to compromise.
Flexibility
is an extremely rare trait among headstrong and idealistic
perfectionists. But among entrepreneurs, being
flexible is critical for success.
Top entrepreneurs quickly adapt to changing business realities,
making them better innovators and creative thinkers than most
perfectionists. This is one of the most common character traits I
see in successful entrepreneurs from my
interviews.
8. You'll be more risk-averse.
Some
psychologists consider perfectionism as a phobia: the fear of
failure or making mistakes. If the thought of failure prevents you
from taking the next step, then you won't really get things done. In
contrast, successful entrepreneurs thrive by learning from their
mistakes and pushing forward. And nearly all of them encountered
major failures along the way, including
yours truly.
9. You'll be seen as a monster by your peers and employees.
People
who know Steve Jobs are aware of the terror his perfectionism
created for the people he worked with for many years. While being a
monster might not be on your personal development agenda, unbridled
perfectionism can turn you into one without even realizing it.
There's a real tendency to hold people against the very same
demanding standards you set for yourself. In many cases, it's just a
recipe for disappointment for all parties involved.
10. You won't find true happiness.
While
everyone wants a perfect life, a perfect spouse, or the perfect
business, nothing of the sort has ever existed. It's merely your
warped perception of how others live, that causes people to want to
emulate the lives of other. Rather, well-balanced people tend to
experience the most happiness throughout their lives. Not so for
perfectionists, according to research professor Brene Brown. She
concludes: if you want to be happy, stop
trying to be perfect.
In
the fast-paced world of business, it's better to aim for excellence,
than take the long shot to perfection.
While
it's possible you'll consistently benefit from striving to be
perfect, the exceptions to the rule are few and far between. That's
why they're called exceptions. Spending too much time perfecting a
feature simply has no place in this era of agile business and smart
product iterations.
Do
you have a different opinion? Do you think perfectionism has more
benefits than drawbacks?
Share
your thoughts with me, I'd like to hear what you think.
COMMENTS