Excellence Or Perfection???

"Striving for excellence motivates you; striving for perfection is demoralizing." - Harriet Braiker, psychologist and best-selling author

I used to drive myself CRAZY striving for perfection! It was exhausting trying to live that way. I am so glad that I don't feel the urgent desire to do that anymore. Whew!

Striving for excellence in all that I do works for me. I want everything I attempt to accomplish to be exactly the way it is supposed to be. However, when I release the need for perfection, my anxiety level goes down and I seem to be able to focus and concentrate more on the project at hand. My ability to work efficiently increases as well and that allows me to get quite a bit accomplished in a short period of time.

When I get bogged down with trying to do something perfectly, I end up not being able to take action at all. So, that leads to wasted time which, in turn, leads to more stress about the project at hand. It's a vicious circle for me and I don't choose to invite that type of chaos into my life anymore if I can help it. I may stray from time to time (getting my taxes done this year falls into this category) but for the most part, I focus on doing the best I can do as I strive for excellence and then move on. I did end up completing the tax return project but there were major delays because I was upset that I hadn't kept perfect records throughout all of last year. I was feeling demoralized about the whole incident but, after seeing this quote, I'm again reminded of how I can avoid this dilemma in the future.

Today I will strive for excellence and release any urge I have to seek perfection. Today I will be motivated and I will complete what is put in front of me today. I am grateful.