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When my company launched a community feature for our clients a few years ago, we made some bad assumptions in our messaging that derailed the campaign's success. But when our creativity fell short, instead of learning from our mistakes, we made an even bigger mistake: We abandoned our efforts altogether. The truth? We were perfectionists who had struggled with a fairly public failure. But instead of reworking our campaign to improve it, we let it fizzle out.
They say perfection is the enemy of progress. I've seen this in my own career as well as in many entrepreneurs. No matter how brilliant a proposal is, the pressure to get everything just right can often delay the launch or even cause it to fail altogether.
Perfectionism is a known enemy of productivity, the cause of many mental disorders, and a common answer to the interview question, “What is your greatest weakness?” Even though we recognize perfectionism as an obstacle to progress (and I certainly have), why do so many creative and innovative people fall into its trap?
Perfectionism may not be a new obstacle, but it is on the rise – and not just among entrepreneurs. A culture of competitive individualism, amplified by social media, puts pressure on all of us to be flawless and can seriously undermine our chances of success in business. In fact, such perfectionism is almost a recipe for failure.
The reality is that we all have to take risks and fail to improve our work, and accepting the value of imperfection is the only viable way to do that.
Perfectionism can be extremely harmful
As a recovering perfectionist, I now understand that perfectionists are more than just uptight overachievers. They can be obsessed with meeting exceptionally high standards and unrealistic expectations. They can even be highly self-critical and fear criticism from others. And yet, many begin their entrepreneurial journeys by comparing themselves to those who have already made it, ignoring the mistakes these role models made along the way.
Almost every entrepreneurial success story is built on countless failures—and many entrepreneurs are famous for that. But I've experienced first-hand that striving for perfection from the start doesn't lead to a successful offering. In fact, the opposite can be true: it doesn't get off the ground at all. Perfectionism often stops aspiring entrepreneurs and creators from sharing their unique genius with the world and bringing a finished product to market. But there are ways to overcome it. And I should know: I'm still working on overcoming it myself.
Fail in small things, win in big things
After the community launch failure (which was fortunately a minor issue in the grand scheme of things), I learned an invaluable lesson: the best way to deal with failure is to examine it, accept it, and use it to improve, not to hide from it and pretend it never happened.
Today, we approach our product launches very differently: in phases that allow us to test the waters, get feedback from our customers, and iterate on our approach and message until we get it just right.
Making mistakes is normal in business, but only by learning from them and course-correcting can you turn them into something positive. Many of the most successful creators take it a step further and share their failures publicly. Patreon's CEO Jack Conte calls it the normalization of failures, and his approach is pure storytelling genius: a balance of humility and humor that makes his failures seem like a true work of art.
Overcoming perfectionism
As a recovering perfectionist, I know that owning up to imperfectionism is easier said than done. We all operate in an extremely competitive and often unforgiving business climate where every move (especially publicized missteps) can be ruthlessly analyzed and criticized. We have all experienced the chilling effect of cancel culture on individuals and companies that have made irreparable mistakes.
To move beyond perfectionism, you need to consciously take calculated risks and build mistakes into the development process. Here are some strategies we use to make this process more enjoyable:
- Connect with a community of like-minded people: It's easier to share imperfect work when the people around us are doing it too. Connecting with a community of entrepreneurs in trial-and-error mode is the best way to see that you are not alone. In fact, by becoming an entrepreneur, you are part of a group of people who want to overcome failure. Whether you find this group through a coworking space or a software-related community, look for others who can take critical feedback and incorporate it into progress.
- Adopt a coaching mindset: It's helpful to remember that no one is perfect, because even seasoned experts make mistakes. Reframing the way I perceive failure (and success) meant reframing missteps as opportunities to improve. You can even reprogram your brain to appreciate critical feedback as the gift it is.
- Look beyond the launch: Product launches, campaigns or company launches often generate an intensity that brings out your best work, but getting too caught up in it can lead to disappointment – especially if the results aren't what you expected. I often tell my team not to put too much creative energy into something that will likely need to be changed once it's out there. Even if it's flawed, I know we'll learn something once it goes live that will allow us to improve it.
The truth is that we all have moments of insecurity. But no matter how uncomfortable it feels to subject your creative work to judgment, the reality is that people will judge it whether you think it's perfect or not. Accept that fact, don't be so hard on yourself, and don't let the idea of perfection stop you from sharing your unique genius. Done is better than perfect, after all.
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