5 Ways to Harness Your Perfectionist Streak

Are you a serial project-starter? Not because you aren’t working on the existing projects, but because they are “never ready”?

I am!

But I was told once by a professor in college something I’ll never forget.

“Get your project off your hard drive; it’s not doing anything for you there.”

This applies to music projects, manuscript ideas, artwork, anything creative under the sun. Your art piece, in whatever medium you’ve chosen, deserves to see the light of day; not for it’s own sake, but for yours! Who knows what your artistic voice might accomplish when set free? You might inspire someone else to pick up a pen, or encourage someone to speak to the world. This is why perfectionism is useful, when it’s your employee—not your boss.

Here are five tips to help you master your perfectionist streak, and use it towards good:

1. “Perfect” actually means “good enough”. If you’re a genuine perfectionist, your version of O.K. is already miles ahead of the general acceptance of O.K.!

2. Give yourself boundaries, or limits, for how many revisions you’re going to do. If someone else was commissioning you for the project, what would your workflow look like? Don’t be kind, be professional. You can even go ahead and make yourself an actual contract, to keep yourself honest.

3. Try a deadline! When working as an entrepreneur, it’s easy to get lost in the workflow because there is no EOD “time to go home!” moment; so create your own work schedule and stick to it. Deadlines, daily work hours, your weekly working schedule… build your own calendar and hold yourself accountable.

4. Notice when you feel most inspired, and recreate those environments. Do you create best in the middle of a bustling coffee shop; or in the quiet reverence of a library? Maybe your best creative moments come from spontaneity. Research, study yourself, and build the most conducive environment for your own productivity. This will help boost confidence, which in turn keeps the perfectionism streak in check to a healthy level.

5. Use a reward system with things you want, but don’t vitally need. Maybe before your coffee break, check in and make sure to submit or finish a predetermined task; instead of just having that afternoon snack, confer with your checklist and mark some items as complete. It’s a simple way to rebuild your thought patterns and train yourself to think of finishing things in a positive way!

All of these are tricks I’ve used over the years. As an avid creator myself (I write and produce music as a solo artist), it’s so easy to get sucked into the perfectionist vortex. I studied my habits and built tools I can use to help myself stay on track in a positive, healthy way—but maybe, these could be a good starting point for you. Maybe, you’ll try them and immediately dislike them, but this will still help you get closer to knowing what methods do work.

Ultimately, any weakness can be turned into a strength. It’s like having a superpower you don’t realize you have. In this case, being a healthy perfectionist means you take care with the details of your project as a professional; not a procrastinator. Having high standards is a skill, as long as you let yourself actually attain them.

Your friendly editor,

Zoe P.