You're not alone...
We all want to put out our best work, and we want it to be great. But there comes a point where you have to decide your project, site or product is "ready" - and get it out there!
Waiting to launch until your project is "perfect" is a flawed approach. Mainly because perfection does not exist - only perception. Your version of perfect may be criticized by others, even. And perhaps it's that fear of criticism, or fear of failure, driving you to make something "perfect" before you release it...
Perfectionism is usually just a well-disguised form of procrastination.
“At its root, perfectionism isn’t really about a deep love of being meticulous. It’s about fear. Fear of making a mistake. Fear of disappointing others. Fear of failure. Fear of success.”
― Michael Law
Dig deep inside yourself and analyze your "pefectionism" - does it relate to personal insecurity, not feeling confident about your expertise or skill or knowledge? Or are you truly striving to put out an excellent work?
There is no ONE "right way" to do anything. The concept of perfect is relative anyway, so there is no way to achieve it. Focus more on getting it done and putting it out there than fussing over the details, or tweaking it to death.
You really owe it to your market to put your content, products, services, etc out there. Waiting, or never getting around to it at all, is a disservice to your market. They want and need your content & products!
Also keep in mind that it's an expense, not an investment, if it's not published. Even if all you have invested is time, that time is a total waste if you never publish your work publicly. And as a good friend of mine says, "you'll never make a dime on ideas and uncompleted products."
Here's an interesting twist that will totally change your thoughts on perfection, and being a perfectionist...
The word "perfection" derives from the Latin "perfectio", and "perfect" — from "perfectus." These expressions in turn come from "perficio" — "to finish", "to bring to an end." "Perfectio(n)" thus literally means "a finishing", and "perfect(us)" — "finished".
..."excellentia" is a distinction among many, and implies comparison; while "perfectio" involves no comparison, and if something is deemed perfect, then it is deemed so in itself, without comparison to other things.
- Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perfection
With that in mind, you are not truly a perfectionist unless you are putting out completed work, and actually finishing projects.
Decide what you want to finish first, put everything else aside, and focus 100% on seeing it through. Remember, it's not "perfect" until it's done!
Best,
p.s. This post is an excerpt from my latest report which you can still download for only $14.95. Enjoy!
