On a daily basis, people struggle with their insecurities and imperfections. People commit mistakes through any action causing them to feel less of themselves. Many feel like they must obtain perfection to be the best version of themselves. But in reality, is perfection even possible? Everyone has their own definition of being ‘perfect.’ They could think being a good athlete, sister,student,daughter,friend is what will make them perfect but in someone else’s point of view they could see perfection differently.
Does the desire of achieving perfection cause a positive or negative effect on one’s mindset? Harriet states that “striving for excellence motivates you; striving for perfection is demoralizing” (Civitella). Having the mindset to excel aids people in improving themselves on the daily and being understandable with themselves when they commit mistakes. A person who has the mentality to want to be perfect all the time will constantly put themselves down when they make mistakes. In most cases people have the urge to be perfect so others can see one’s perfection. A perfectionist mindset is “exceedingly concerned about others’ evaluation of them, hardly ever satisfied with their performance, and blame themselves for when things go wrong even when they are not directly involved or responsible” showing how a perfectionist only achieves happiness through the validation of others and does not put their own feelings and thoughts first (Durlofsky).
It could be mistaken that perfection is equal to excellence but that’s not quite the case because “perfectionism has more to do with how things appear to others and whether they think they’re done right. Excellence is about having a reason and a purpose for what you’re doing and being driven by that purpose to achieve results that will ultimately make you succeed” (Civitella). Therefore excellence causes one to excel more than wanting to be perfect.
Although many try to achieve perfection, it is important to be content with oneself. There is always room for improvement and there is nothing wrong with wanting to improve yourself whether it be emotionally, physically, or even financially. Motivation for self improvement should come from wanting to excel and not from the idea of wanting to achieve perfection.
Works Cited
Civitella, Angela. “Council Post: Perfection or Excellence? One Is Myth, and One Is Reality.”
Forbes, Forbes Magazine, 24 Oct. 2018, https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescoachescouncil/2018/10/24/perfection-or-excellence-one-is-myth-and-one-is-reality/?sh=5240df485883.
Durlofsky, Paula. “Expectations vs. Reality: How to Let Go of Perfectionism.” Main Line Today,
1 Dec. 2019, https://mainlinetoday.com/life-style/health/expectations-vs-reality-how-to-let-go-of-perfectionism/.
Dear Yamilet,
I was very amused by your writing Perfection vs Reality. This is because I feel like a lot of times something is supposed to look or be a type of way and sometimes it may not look that way in the end. Sometimes this can mess with mental health.
One sentence that you wrote that stood out to me was “Having the mindset to excel aids people in improving themselves on a daily and being understandable with themselves when they commit mistakes.”. This sentence stood out to me because having a positive mindset is something that I have a hard time with. But it can be beneficial to our mental health.
Thank you for your writing. I hope you keep writing with topics that are very related to others. I feel it is very helpful to know about these topics.
Kimberly
Dear Yamilet,
I am amazed by your post, “Perfection vs. Reality” because many people do struggle with insecurities and imperfections. Many believe that they have to be perfect and obtain the best version of themselves.
One sentence that stood out to me was “Although many try to achieve perfection, it is important to be content with oneself. There is always room for improvement and there is nothing wrong with wanting to improve yourself whether it be emotionally, physically, or even financially.” I think this is important because people should be comfortable with themselves and be satisfied with who they are.
Thank you for your writing. I look forward to seeing what you write next because I like the comparisons you made between “perfections” and reality.