 Healthy
Reflections Newsletter
Publisher
(850) 656-1404
April 21, 2010
email: info@mentalhealthcorner.com
---------------------------------------------------------------
|
| Greetings!
Over the years, I've worked with a number of clients who struggle with the issue of perfectionism. While realizing that perfection doesn't exist, many of us still experience frustration and a negative self-concept in an attempt to attain it. This issue's Mental Health Nugget explores the differences between excellence and perfection. As always, I'd love to hear your feedback on the topic at: info@mentalhealthcorner.com. |
|
|
Your Mental Health Nugget
Who Needs Perfection Anyway?
Excellence is better than perfection; perfection is static while excellence is evolving. Mistakes are required to reach higher and higher levels of excellence. Excellence stretches and has contingencies and flexibility to take advantage of less than perfect situations and transform circumstances to make the outcome better than anyone could have imagined.
Perfection is fragile, while excellence is prepared for just about anything and bounces back stronger to overcome obstacles. Something new always comes along to throw a monkey wrench at perfection. When that happens, perfection gets flustered, frazzled, and completely broken because it neglected to expect the unexpected.
Excellence welcomes tests and challenges as opportunities to expand knowledge and wisdom. Excellence understands that truth changes with our consciousness and perception. Reality is rearranging and cannot be stopped from constantly changing. Perfection cannot handle that kind of stress. If it is all not done and if it is all not complete, than it is not perfect. It is never done and it is never complete, so the illusion of perfection can never last.
Excellence presents itself as willing to learn. Perfection boasts itself as knowing it all. Perfection says it has seen it all before, while excellence takes initiative to open undiscovered doors. Excellence gets down in the dirt to plant seeds for future development. Perfection does not tolerate getting soiled.
Chaos is a fact of life. Excellence takes that into account and perfection does not. Perfection is oblivious to everything except itself and leaves itself dangerously vulnerable to the unknown because it thinks it is invincible, yet can fall to pieces at any moment of time. Falling to pieces is an experience excellence has visited many times and knows how to put the pieces back together in new creative ways. It is energized by the process of becoming more than it was before. Excellence makes sacrifices for growth. Perfection has attachments and is in a stagnant state of not letting go until the inevitable disaster happens. Excellence rides the surf. Perfection does not even like getting a little wet, yet gets totally crushed by the waves. It is not for us to stay the way we are. We move and have our being in fluctuation, disintegration, and re-inventing ourselves. It is our destiny to grow. Excellence allows us to grow while perfection stymies us.
Perfection only looks at what it already knows. Excellence knows that it does not know. Improvement is always possible and plausible. Excellence is not the destination, so it always contemplates the question... "How can I do better?" Every once in a while it may even ask, "How can I be sure not to screw up next time?"
Excellence is not beyond considering and even seeking out guidance from multiple and diverse sources. On the other hand, perfection never admits it's mistakes, is quick to blame and judge others. Perfection is always right and never wrong and there is no sense ever arguing with it or even expressing a suggestion. Really, when it gets down to it ... "Who Needs Perfection Anyway?" If you're interested in learning more about perfectionism and ways to cope with it, an excellent resource is:
Too Perfect: When Being In Control Gets Out of Control
by Allan E. Mallinger, M.D. and Jeannette DeWyze
---------------------------------------------------------
|
Quotes To Ponder:
Ideas are like rabbits. You get a couple and learn how to handle them, and pretty soon you have a dozen. - John Steinbeck, 1902-1968, American Author
Serenity is not freedom from the storm, but calmness within the storm. -
Anonymous You cannot do a kindness too soon, for you never know how soon it will be too late. - Ralph Waldo Emerson, 1803-1882, American Poet and Essayist
------------------------------------------------------------- |
|
Missed Any Previous Editions?
If you've missed any of our previous newsletters, you can access them at:
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
Do you know of someone who might enjoy receiving this newsletter?If so, click on the "Forward email" link below and send it over to them.
|
|
|
|
|
