Why good enough is good enough
Story time! I believe in evolution. The evolution of ideas. I am constantly working on new services and iterations of The Actualisation Academy and visions of how my life looks in conjunction with my purpose. I started TAA while trying to conceive a human baby. 6 months in I started fertility treatment. Month 7-10 I was in bed with nausea! Month 11 I moved to the other side of the world to a city where I have no reputation and a very small network. It wasn't the first year of business I envisaged but I am so grateful that I have continued to move forward with these ideas despite the conditions being less than perfect. My ‘good enough’, at times, has simply been servicing my existing client base with no capacity to try to reach more. And that's okay.
I learned this principal IRL from a business woman I really admire. Sharmadean Reid. She is the founder of The Stack World, an amazing community driven platform that brings together like minded, powerful women. The main iteration of TSW is on an app. An app that has had bugs. That wasn't available on android. That was a work in progress. I remember on the 1 year anniversary of TSW, Sharmadean said, “imagine if I'd waited until it was perfect”. We'd all have missed out on so many gatherings, networking events and panels that have moved me, inspired me and enriched my life. Good enough, was fucking awesome. Good enough is the goal.
Perfectionism's downfall
For a long time in our hustle culture we have had perfectionism on a proverbial pedestal. We have believed that to be perfectionist is to be excellent.
Times are a changin', my friend. Perfectionism is no longer the aspiration.
Read on to find out why and what the alternative is.
Perfectionism is flawed because it is:
a distraction from risk
an attempt at holding on to control
a form of procrastination
an empty filler for lack of self worth
In a world where there is so much that is beyond our control, the truth is, focusing on making one specific thing perfect seems quite appealing. I've certainly fallen prey to this plenty of times.
However we are unlikely to get anything truly perfect - isn't perfection subject anyway? We can miss out on life trying to attain it regardless.
Why good enough is good enough
This isn't about half-hearted attempts, quitting before reaching completion or letting yourself off the hook. To be good enough is to be dedicated to something, to apply focus and tenacity and an appropriate amount of time working on it.
Once you achieve ‘good enough’ status, the following benefits can roll on through:
opportunities to take a risk
momentum to keep moving forward
rerouting with data acquisition from trial and error (not possible when stalling in the pursuit of perfection)
welcoming connection over the ‘good enough’ output (rather than hiding it away from the world because it is not yet perfect)
How will you know if it is good enough?
Ask yourself what the end goal is. What does the return of this effort depend on? What is the lasting impact? What is the permanence of the output?
For example…
Waiting to have the perfect athletic wear, to sign up for the most aesthetic pilates studio and being the ‘right’ size to start working out makes no sense! Health and wellness require lifelong maintenance and there is no such thing as perfection. Good enough is where its at.
Waiting to have the perfect number of beautifully crafted, professional looking YouTube videos before telling your community about them is redundant. You learn and grow as you DO. Good enough is hitting publish, letting the world view your art and growing on the journey.
Waiting to be perfect before loving yourself is a waste of your life. You are good enough and your worth is unconditional.
Let's put it into action
What have you been putting off because of fear of judgement, fear of failure or fear of not being perfect?
Launching a podcast?
Signing up to a running club?
Dating?
Ask yourself what ‘good enough’ looks like in that scenario and take that next step forward. Get some momentum going. Be consistent, invite in the results you desire.
Life is for livin'! Not for perfecting.
Onwards and upwards we go.
