How to get rid of perfectionism: 9 practical techniques

How to get rid of perfectionism: 9 practical techniques

If you don't suffer from perfectionism, you may wonder why you need to get rid of the healthy habit of doing everything well. But perfectionism is not about “doing well,” but about “bringing it to the ideal,” which is most often unattainable and unnecessary.

So, PPC specialists, and other digital workers as well, will benefit from pedantry and attention to detail, but true perfectionism is more likely to do harm. Simple example:

A little exaggerated, but something like this

The first column contains the mandatory actions of an experienced specialist, without which it is impossible to launch a high-quality campaign. The second is trying to do everything perfectly. The problem is that all this will take a lot of time and will hardly be noticeable in the advertising campaign indicators. And in the first column we see what is called “to do”, in the second - “to do”. Feel the difference.

The costs and benefits of these actions are incommensurable, so such perfectionism is more likely to harm than to benefit.

The problem is also relevant because over the past 30 years the level of perfectionism has been increasing from generation to generation. According to a study by scientists published in the scientific journal Psychological Bulletin, millennials are 10% more demanding of themselves and 16% more demanding of others than young people of the late 1980s.

So, if you recognize yourself in the second column, let's move on to specific techniques that will help you stop striving for unattainable ideals and achieve Zen.

Admit the problem

Perfectionism comes from the field of psychology, but here almost always everything starts with awareness of the problem. Therefore, first of all, to make sure that it exists, remember the cases when, due to the desire for perfection, you:

• missed deadlines;
• were disappointed in a successful project due to high expectations;
• refused a good client out of fear of failure;
• were upset because your desire to do it perfectly was not appreciated by the client or manager;
• We stayed up two nights working on the task, and still weren’t satisfied with the result.

Do you remember?
Now realize that this is not the norm and it is not at all necessary to feel unhappy until you achieve the ideal.

Of course, if everything were so simple, this could be the end of the article. However, recognizing the unattainability and uselessness of an ideal is one thing, but stopping striving for it is quite another. Therefore, having realized the problem, we move on to practical methods and techniques that will help bring the inner perfectionist under control.

Limit your time

Striving to do the job perfectly, perfectionists stick to the task for a long time, polishing and honing every little detail. For example, they endlessly select references for creatives in YAN, while the creatives themselves are never ready.

To monitor and prevent such moments, engage in each task for a strictly allotted time. For example, give yourself 2 hours to analyze a project for a new client, and then move on to the next thing. This way, you'll reduce the risk of spending half a day looking at all your competitors in context.

It is convenient to measure the time allotted for a task with a timer or through online time tracking services. Then, even if you lose control, the notification sound will help you regain focus and catch up on lost time.

Choose a timer with a browser extension so you don’t have to switch between windows

And to avoid the risk of wasting too much time, think about Pomodoro. In the classical technique, the timer works after a 25-minute working session and a 5-minute break - during such a period you simply will not have time to lose much time.

By the way, if you decide to work using the Pomodoro technique, it will be convenient to measure time for tasks not in hours, but in “pomodoros”. That is, we devote not 2 hours, but 4 “pomodoros” to analyzing a new project. It is convenient to keep such to-do lists in task managers combined with special “pomodoro” timers:

• Pomotodo;
• Focus To-Do;
• PomoDone.

By the way, to spend less time creating creatives, you can use the special tools that we talked about in the blog.

Make a clear task list

If you simply decide that you will complete the task in 2 hours, then the risk of lingering on little things and going over the deadline will remain. To reduce it, record your hourly plan - in a paper diary or online service. This can be a classic schedule with tasks distributed by hours of the working day, or simply a list where the time allotted for it is indicated next to each task.

This is what the schedule for the first half of the day might look like in Google Calendar

Keep your goal in focus

In pursuit of the ideal, perfectionists easily lose focus. For example, they forget that the main thing is to launch a test campaign and accumulate statistics, and not to create the most effective advertising the first time. As a result, they spend three days thoroughly cleaning the semantics, instead of getting the first result in the same time and understanding that they need to test other channels.

Always keep your target in focus so you don't get scattered

To avoid this, keep the end goal of each task in mind at all times. At first, you can write it down in a nutshell side by side in the plan. Once you formulate it once, you are unlikely to forget it. And if suddenly this happens, the written down goal will always be in sight.

Formulate the result in advance

In addition to the goal, it is also worth formulating the result. Not the ideal that you always strive for, but the minimum necessary to achieve your goal. Knowing in advance what result you need to get, you can stop in time and not get bogged down in details.

For example, if you need to collect semantics to present a new client with an approximate breakdown of the advertising budget, a basic list of hot requests would be an acceptable result. There is no point in working out the core in detail here: the client may refuse simply because it is not profitable for him, and you will waste your time.

Spending time on unnecessary details makes us feel like that white rabbit who was always late.

And to make client refusals less noticeable financially, you can try to earn more on each project. For example, connect to the Click.ru affiliate program and receive up to 18% of clients’ advertising turnover.

Use the progressive jeep method

It was described by Artemy Lebedev in the context of design tasks, but the general principle is applicable to any work. The bottom line is that at any given time any project is 100% ready, only the degree of elaboration differs.

This is how Lebedev illustrated the principle in his Leadership

That is, when working on any project, you first make a rough sketch in general terms, and then gradually detail it. For example, when creating semantics for a campaign, you first collect important basic queries and then work them through them.

The progressive jeeping method solves two problems at once:

• It won’t turn out that all the time is spent on the task, but you are only 10% ready;
• you can settle on the degree of detail that is necessary to obtain the result. And don’t waste time on little things that don’t affect it in any way.

Let the product rest

This technique follows from the previous one. If you're 100% done with a less-than-complete version of a project, it can be helpful to leave it and move on to another task. Then you can look at the work with fresh eyes and understand what needs improvement and what doesn’t.

Perhaps in a day you will find that the product is almost perfect

Before your next attempt, remember the goal and the minimum required result that you formulated earlier. If the project already meets them, just stop. If not, determine what needs to be done to comply.

Learn to delegate

Another pain of a perfectionist is the inability to trust someone with even the simplest things. It seems that no one can do the job as well as you, with an A+. If so, it’s better to do it yourself or not do it at all. The result is known: a perfectionist spends a lot of time working on tasks that are not the highest priority, and what is really important for the implementation of projects and achieving life goals stands still.

Think about what tasks you can safely delegate

Once you master delegation, you:

• you will not waste your strength and energy on things that do not bring you closer to your goal;
• free up time for priority tasks that will benefit from perfectionism;
• learn to relate more easily to the mistakes of others, and at the same time your own.

Relax

Afraid of making a mistake, not doing well enough, and not getting approval, the perfectionist is in constant stress and nervous tension. It harms your health, personal life and career. In addition, it is definitely not possible to live with drive and enjoy what is happening in such a state.

Therefore, it is important to learn to relax, let go of the situation and rest. At first, meditation and hobbies can help with this, and in the case of digital specialists, digital detox and offline therapy. Choose days and/or times when you are not online at all: put away gadgets, turn off notifications. At such moments, it is useful to get out into nature and to interesting places, meet pleasant people and spend time actively - do what brings positive emotions and energizes you personally.

Sometimes you need to let go and say yes to your wants and needs.

Useful books about perfectionism and combating it

Want to learn more about perfectionism? We have prepared for you a list of books on this topic that are worth reading.

1. “Don't try to do everything perfectly. Strategies for Combating Perfectionism,” Anthony Martin M., Swinson Richard P.
2. "The Perfectionist's Paradox" by Tal Ben-Shahar.
3. “Better than perfection. How to Curb Perfectionism by Elizabeth Lombardo.
4. “Praise me. How to stop depending on other people's opinions and gain self-confidence”, Craig English, James Rapson.
5. "Confidence. A clear guide to getting rid of fears, complexes and anxieties,” Caroline Foren.

Formulate a minimum acceptable result

The main principle of working with “dangerous” cases (see previous section) sounds like this:

Before you begin a task, formulate a minimum acceptable result for it.

Think: what requirements are enough to fulfill for the work to be considered complete? For example:

This technique helps you separate what needs to be done from what doesn't need to be done. In this way, we seem to outline boundaries that we will protect from “attacks of perfectionism.”

For example, our minimum acceptable outcome is “just start running.” Secondary matters automatically become the choice of a tracksuit, the choice of a route and music in the player. All this can be done after the matter has moved forward.

For those “dangerous” tasks that we perform regularly, it is useful to create separate “don’t do” lists. For example:

These lists should be kept handy as you work.

Focus on speed

Try working a little faster than you are used to. At the same time, there is no need to rush and fuss: just make small but constant efforts on yourself to speed up.

This is another way to calm the “inner critic”. When we act quickly enough, it is more difficult for him to wedge himself into the work process with his dissatisfaction and eternal longing for unattainable ideals. We can calmly finish the work, and only then, if there is time left, return to it and correct something.

By the way, the opposite is also true: a slow pace of work increases the danger of perfectionism.

Books

"The Perfectionist Paradox"

A book by Tal Ben-Shahar, an American scientist of Israeli origin. A work about how the pursuit of perfection distances us from happiness.

"Better than perfection"

A book from current clinical psychologist Elizabeth Lombardo about how to overcome your inner critic. The author gives 7 strategies.

“Work and personality: workaholism, perfectionism and laziness”

A major work for psychologists and sociologists, dedicated to the modern perception of professional activity. Author E.P. Ilyin, considers the structure and genesis of the phenomenon.

Love minimalism

Try to keep everything as simple as possible. Ruthlessly remove all non-essential details and focus on ensuring that your “product” simply performs the function for which it was created.

Each new detail increases the likelihood of an attack of perfectionism. The more complex an object is, the more difficult it is to connect its parts “perfectly” and the more problems arise when creating it.

A beginner but ambitious designer designs a promo page. He wants to use all his knowledge and create a “masterpiece.” That’s why he generously adds all kinds of elements to the layout: buttons, dies, pictures, menus, icons and columns.

As a result, the page begins to look like a counter at an oriental bazaar. Now, to bring the layout to fruition, the designer will need a lot of time. Moreover, his perfectionism has room to roam.

Hence the rule: first of all, you should do everything “simple, but clean.” Then, if such a need nevertheless arises, you can carefully add some details. By the way, this is much easier to do when we already have a completed and working version.

Use incremental improvements

Oddly enough, perfectionism can be planned and controlled. To do this, you need to build a workflow in the form of successive iterations of improvement (this approach is also called the “progressive jeep method”).

The point of technology is to obtain the most complete product possible at each stage of work. Here, for example, is how it can be used in web coding:

First, we create a form in pure HTML. We get a very rough, but quite working option. During the second pass, we give our form a "decent look" using CSS. In the third stage we add various small details.

The method can be adapted for other areas: painting, design, programming, etc. And professional novelists have a similar technique called the “snowflake method.”

This approach forces us to precisely dose our perfectionism and prevents us from getting bogged down in details ahead of time. In addition, our work at each stage will have a more or less finished look, and if necessary we will be able to use what we already have.

Set deadlines

Set a deadline for completing a task or its individual stages. For example:

Deadlines are a natural limiter to perfectionism. It’s as if a countdown timer is turned on in our heads, constantly reminding us that we need to move on, that there is no time to polish the details and chase the ideal.

Having set a deadline, try to complete the bulk of the work at the very beginning, and correct minor defects and any improvements closer to the end. This approach will increase the likelihood that you will have a completed result by the target date.

A variation of this technique is the regular schedule. It forces us to quickly move from one thing to another, leaving no time to dig into the details.

Don't forget about the goal

Another effective method of combating perfectionism is a clearly defined work goal. It helps to quickly separate the important from the unimportant, and the most important from the unimportant.

We are going to put up a notice that our company is closed for the holidays. Our goal is to inform visitors so that they purchase items in advance and do not come to pick them up on the weekend.

What is important to achieve this goal? So that the visitor sees the ad and understands its essence. All that is required of us is to write a clear text, type it in large letters and hang it in a visible place. It makes absolutely no difference:

• How beautiful a font we typed it in (the simpler the better).
• How elegantly we presented the information (the simpler the better).
• What kind of tape did we use to stick it on?
• How perfectly level we hung it, etc.

If you feel stuck in the details, ask yourself: What is the purpose of my work? This question helps you quickly “see the forest for the trees” and return to the “true path.”

Start with a draft

If perfectionism overtakes you at the start, use such an ancient method as a draft. To remove internal blocks, make a quick and casual sketch of your future work.

A. S. Pushkin. Draft of the poem “I erected a monument to myself, not made by hands”

A draft helps calm our “inner critic.” As soon as he begins to be indignant at the lack of quality work, we tell him:

-What are you worried about? It's just a draft!

“Oh, okay then,” he says, and removes his bony hands from our throats.

In addition, the draft allows you to quickly get a blank of our “product”, which can then be easily completed, corrected and improved. Otherwise, we would have been struggling for a very long time to get to this “beta version” through the jungle of perfectionism.

When working on a draft, it is important to relax and allow yourself to be “imperfect.” Allow yourself to create the most disgusting thing in the world and make all the stupidest mistakes. Nobody will know about them anyway. And after finishing the work, you will gradually turn all this “horror” into a “masterpiece”.

And yes, first drafts should never be shown to anyone. And not even because they will be ashamed. The point is this: if we know that someone can basically see them, it will be more difficult for us to relax and avoid perfectionism.

Problems and consequences

• Perfectionists constantly suffer from internal conflicts and anxiety. They do not forgive themselves for minor mistakes.

• Obsessed with approval. Having received an excellent assessment from society, a perfectionist will strive for it by any means necessary.

• A person does not enjoy life, does not notice pleasant little things. Good relationships with loved ones and friendly connections fade into the background.

• Mistakes cause stress. A perfectionist lives in tension and does not allow himself to relax.

• He overworks, so he gets sick easily. May suffer from cardiovascular disease due to exhaustion.

Perfectionists often raise their children in the same way. They lay the groundwork for complexes, fears and neuroticism at an early age.