Do you often find yourself procrastinating on tasks? Are your goals ambitious yet seemingly unrealistic? Do you struggle to accept healthy criticism? If you’ve answered yes to any of these questions, you might be exhibiting perfectionist tendencies. On the surface, perfectionism is often viewed in a positive light. It’s associated with a keen attention to detail, the ability to deliver exceptional results, and a reputation for never missing deadlines. However, for many perfectionists, this relentless pursuit of the perfect can be more debilitating than empowering.

For instance, when perfectionism spills over into areas like eating habits, it can become unhealthy. While it’s normal to hold yourself to high standards, feeling like your world is unraveling because you haven’t met your own expectations is a sign that your perfectionism may be doing more harm than good. The silver lining? It’s possible to recalibrate your approach to goal-setting and self-compassion with some practice!

The Three Faces of Perfectionism:

1. Self-oriented perfectionism: This type involves holding oneself to an impossibly high standard of perfection.
2. Other-oriented perfectionism: This manifests as placing unattainable standards of perfection on others.
3. Socially-prescribed perfectionism: This occurs when one perceives that others have excessive expectations of their performance.

Navigating Through the Perils of Negative Perfectionism

🖋 Recognize perfectionist thoughts: Start by reflecting on your goals and past actions to identify how perfectionism might be impacting you negatively. Unproductive perfectionist thoughts often include beliefs like “anything less than perfection is a failure” or “making a mistake means I will face unbearable humiliation.” Challenge these thoughts with more balanced, neutral statements, such as “mistakes are part of being human.”

🌻 Conduct a cost-benefit analysis: Have you ever spent an extra hour on a PowerPoint presentation just to get two images perfectly aligned? Aiming for 100% in everything you do can slow you down. Learning to identify which goals deserve your full attention and which tasks are just “good enough” is a crucial skill.

🐢 Break goals into manageable chunks: Perfectionism often leads to setting unattainable goals, resulting in feelings of sadness or disappointment. By breaking down larger objectives into smaller, more manageable tasks, you can set yourself up for success and reduce the pressure to be perfect.

Here’s How We Can Help You

Striving for perfection in skills, traits, or even appearance is common, and you’re not alone in feeling this way. In fact, 68% believe that perfectionism leads to burnout, with 66% of workplaces acknowledging the struggle against perfectionist tendencies. A third of employees are even considering leaving their jobs due to perfectionist expectations. Through our MindTales app, you can explore your emotions, discuss what’s been weighing you down, and uncover the root causes of your perfectionism with wellness coaches.