Thoughts on Perfectionism
What is perfectionism? What it is NOT is merely having high standards or striving too intensely to achieve a goal. Perfectionism can corner you when you are frozen by the possibility of making a mistake creating a painfully narrow view of life. It may be better to strive for excellence rather than perfection. A state of excellence requires efficiency using less time and effort and is associated with academic improvement, future success and better life satisfaction. Perfectionists’ wellbeing is at stake when they hold themselves to such inflexibly high standards that it leads to harmful self-criticism.