Leadership Perspective: Reverse Paradigms – Perfect versus Good

To improve is to change; to be perfect is to change often. – Winston Churchill

Perfect is the enemy of good. – attributed to Voltaire

“striving to better, oft we mar what’s well” – Shakespeare in King Lear

We change something because we fear that it’s not good enough. We change it again to address that same fear. We change it yet again because there’s room for improvement. Then, at last, we realize that the first version was really good, and the best of the lot. Now, we’ve wasted time and energy (in business, that equates to money) and raised our anxiety level, when we could have been practical in the first place with our original creation.

We can be so focused on the micro that we lose perspective of the macro. We must keep our vision in mind and focus on outcomes.

Here are some of the dangers of perfection in leadership:

1. Perfection paralysis: We do nothing because we aren’t ready. We continue to get ready by creating yet one more thing. We create all the minor details at the expense of moving forward. Creating momentum in business is important. This is not rushing. This is movement. Stephen Covey said, “Begin with the end in mind.” Napoleon Hill said to begin at once to move toward your goal, and work out the details as you go. Prudent planning is essential. Perfecting the plan, instead of working the plan, leads to failure.
2. Desire to attain the unattainable: Perfection is a mindset. Desiring a big goal is great. Championing a grand vision is awesome. Make sure that those outcomes are attainable. Good goals are realistic. Have a support group of wise people to provide feedback and give you a reality check. Don’t let them steal your dream, however; listen to practical advice and then decide if you think it’s attainable.
3. Perfection is procrastination: Putting off doing things is deadly to leadership. Organizations are stagnant because the leader puts things off. Chasing perfection is a sneaky way of procrastination. Enough said. Just get it done.
4. Change is not always good: Check your motivation. Some leaders thrive on creating energy based on change. Many followers resist change, so constant change can create anxiety in the culture. If your motivation depends on the energy of creating change, then ask yourself why and if there’s a negative impact on the performance of the culture. Fear of change is not good. Things change – the only thing that doesn’t change is change itself, however, losing track of why isn’t good.
5. Perfection is compulsion: Getting stuck in the compulsion to constantly create perfection happens when the leader loses perspective. Knowing self and managing self are essential to effective leadership. Always have a coach, if for nothing else than to have an advisor to provide perspective to your thinking.

Dr. Alex Lickerman writes about perfection in Psychology Today: “Recognizing that inflection point—the point at which our continuing to rework our work reaches a law of diminishing returns—is one of the hardest skills to learn, but also one of the most necessary. Sometimes our first attempt truly is best; sometimes it takes seventeen attempts to really nail it. But overworking something is just as bad as failing to polish it.” Read the post.

Excellence is attention to detail while moving forward. Perfection is stalling and making excuses for not moving forward.

Musical groups become ensembles by constantly paying attention to detail and striving for excellence.

Excellence is not perfection.