LIFE

Being a perfectionist isn’t the same as being motivated or ambitious. It’s important to shoot for the stars, but it’s also a must to realize that messing up is okay. If you tell yourself flaws equal failure, you’ll wind up feeling rotten no matter what. Here’s how to aim for passion, not perfection.

Pick out the problem

Take a sec to think about the times and places where you stress to perfect. At school? At home? On dates? Focus on those scenarios as you try to improve.

Take it down a notch

Put your problems in perspective and keep calm. Instead of obsessing over a single task, think about the bigger picture. It’s not the end of the world if you didn’t get an A on your History essay- you’ve got plenty of time to boost your final class grade. When you consider the situation as a whole, you’ll see how silly it is to sweat the small stuff.

Don’t be scared of slip-ups

If you’re a perfectionist, it’s most likely because you fear failure. Don’t! Even Oprah says that “failure is a great teacher”. You learn way better lessons from your mistakes than your successes. So instead of seeing mess-ups as pout-worthy, think of them as awesome opportunities to improve.

Realize it’s impossible- and find a new goal that isn’t

Stop setting your up for disappointment by aiming for perfection. Instead, pick tasks you can tackle, and don’t overwhelm yourself with too much to do. But that doesn’t mean you should play it safe. Once you feel comfortable, you can push yourself to do more. Now that you know it’s okay to do wrong, let yourself take risks. If you mess up, it’s totally NBD! 

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