This has to be Perfect!

A friend of mine asked me a question, and it got me thinking. “Would you rather have something fail within your control? Or has something failed out of your control?” As a creative it’s inevitable to be faced with rough roads, especially when it comes to the creating stage of a project. It can usually be small problems that are easy to solve, or the very long blank stares and being deep in thought. These types of situations can be a little more frustrating for those who have the perfectionist personality. Well, I fall into that category.

I could say I’m happy it’s not the severe kind of perfectionism, but one way or another, I am one, considering I hit the marks on things like acting a little defensive in the face of criticism, or I become critical of others with my impossibly high standards, and how I equate success with happiness. Usually that happiness comes from knowing my plans go the way I want them too or if the ideas I have come out perfectly.

As a creative person who has this personality, it is a challenge. Going back to the question, if I were to choose which situation would I rather prefer, I would most definitely choose, “something that would fail out of my control”. I bet that most people would answer the same, being a perfectionist or not. It’s easier to blame it on the situation or a person, rather than knowing it was your fault.

Although, that’s not the case in real life. What would happen in those situations where you fail within your control? What would you do? We all are imperfect people, so there are many occasions where it’s inevitable that we fail or things don’t go the way we want them to. It’s in this thought I have come to realize the beauty of failure.

Beauty you ask? The beautiful thing when you fail or when things don’t go your way, is you can learn from them. I’ve come to realize as a creative and as a person, that when you accept that things are not perfect, you begin to enjoy the journey. It also makes living life a lot more fun, because unexpected things happen. Failure is a way for us to grow.

So, don’t worry too much, sometimes it’s all about letting go or taking the first step in your plan. Just like Martin Luther King, Jr. said, “You don’t have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step.” Rather than beating myself up for plans not going my way, it’s all about the change of mindset, it’s alright, accept it and learn from your experiences.