Perfect Not Equal to Best

The winter Olympics are happening now and I have not really caught much of them this year but I know enough that in many of the events the judges are rating the performances on a scale. The closer you are to the top number the better the performance is judged. I remember watching in 1976 when Nadia Comaneci scored a perfect 10 on the uneven bars. After that, anything less than a perfect 10 was a failure.

I tend to apply this same philosophy to the goals in my life… “If I can’t do it perfectly, then why do it or worse yet just quit if not perfect. For example, one of my 2022 goals is to write a blog a week and the plan was to post it each Monday. Well, yesterday got away from me and I never wrote one let alone posted it. So this morning as I was reviewing my to-do list from yesterday and making one for today, I thought, “Scratch that off the list and I will do it next Monday.” But wait, why? I am the one that created the arbitrary “rule” of posting on Mondays – I can change that rule. As Jon Acuff says, “I am my own CEO and I am a good boss!” So here I am…not being perfect but still moving the ball down the court. Still posting, even if it is “late.”

While I am confessing, I will share another “failure.” In 2022, I want to read a specific number of books in specific genres. I have been reading and getting lots done but not recording the activity. I really have no idea how many books I have read or what genres. However, as I looked over at my journal that I use to keep track of my goals I thought, “Well, why not start now? It is only 6 weeks into a year.” And guess what? I am on track to meet my goal!

What about you? Has perfectionism gotten in the way of finishing something? Have you quit because 85% is not good enough for you? Are you pursuing perfect rather than excellence? Don’t let a setback be a setup for failure. Get up, dust yourself off and start again. Love what Albert Einstein says, “It is only a failure if you quit trying.” Here’s to less than perfect!!!

PS If you checked out the video of Nadia Comaneci, the score board could not display a 10 because it had never been done before. I think there is a spiritual lesson in that as well.