I’m not sure if it’s because I am a Leo, or if it’s just a personality trait I possess. But I have chased perfection for the longest time, and I know this will be true for so many of you too.
It has taken lots of screw-ups, missteps, and disappointments for me to see that perfection - as tantalising as it may be - does not and can never exist. So to chase this holy grail of career/life goals is, well, a pointless endeavour.
If you like trying to stop a leak with a colander, then be my guest, but for the rest of you - please read on.
You can never be 100% happy. To try and force this, will stop you from being the 94% level of happiness you already actually have. This means you will miss out on so much joy. I don’t mean to be blunt - but we must all be so stupid to miss out on the happiness that is available just to seek ‘perfection’.
One of the things that causes a search for perfection, is being critical. There is a time and place for being critical. Critical thinking when it comes to the career of an academic is great. Being critical about the success of a catch-up drink with a friend is stupid. Being critical of the smaller more fun moments in life is a wasted endeavour as it blocks off seeing the great bits that happened without effort.
So if you feel you would like to be less fixated on perfection then you need to loosen your grip on the reins. Stop trying to control every single element in your life. Enjoy each day for what it is, instead of analysing and micro-managing your emotional response.
Enjoy the journey, instead of fixating on the destination - which if you think about it, is very good advice for life…
