Perfectionism
Perfectionism isn’t just about being detail-oriented or striving for excellence. It can manifest as a relentless pursuit of flawlessness, accompanied by self-criticism and concerns about others’ evaluations. Like an internal critic that’s never satisfied, perfectionism can keep you in a perpetual state of stress and dissatisfaction.
If your high standards are causing you distress or impacting your well-being, it might be time to explore solutions. Speaking to a psychologist like myself can help you understand and resolve the underlying factors of perfectionism.
Symptoms of Perfectionism
While having high standards can be positive, perfectionism becomes problematic when it interferes with your happiness and productivity. Symptoms include:
- Excessive preoccupation with details
- Procrastination due to fear of not meeting standards
- Excessive checking or redoing tasks
- All-or-nothing thinking
- Harsh self-criticism
- Fear of failure
- Difficulty delegating tasks
- Low self-esteem
Getting Help with Perfectionism
People are sometimes concerned that if they become less perfectionistc that the quality or amount of work they produce will decrease. However, counter-intuitively, people who become less perfectionistic often become more productive and have a higher quality of work.
Why is this the case? Well, it is important to understand that perfectionism is a behaviour, or a set of behaviours, and behaviours have functions (or to put it simply, we do every behaviour for a reason). If you are finding that your perfectionism is causing you problems then the function of your perfectionism is probably avoidance. For example, people can be perfectionistic to avoid criticism or to avoid facing emotions towards other people.
If we can help you face and become comfortable with the experience that you are trying to avoid then the perfectionism can ease off and be less rigid, resulting in fewer problems for you. This also means that if something is really important to you (for example, a creative project or something at work or school) then you can still be perfectionistic about it if you want to and if it is helpful to do so (so you might end up working harder and more effectively).
The goal in working on perfectionism therefore is to be more flexible and comfortable with yourself. Resulting in less anxiety, less procrastination, more fulfilment in work and activities, less self-attack and so forth. The goal is not to do less work or lower quality work unless that would be helpful (for example, people might still want to have a high standard at work or school but they can relax when it comes to writing texts to a friend).
Working with someone like me can be a game changer when it comes to perfectionism. Together we can understand the impact that perfectionism is having on you, what the perfectionism is rooted in, and help you get comfortable with yourself so that you are in control of your standards and that your standards are not in control of you.
Services and Resources to Help You with Perfectionism
Here are some options that might help you manage perfectionism. What works varies from person to person, so feel free to explore several approaches.
Start with:
Seeing a Psychologist: As a psychologist, I frequently assist individuals struggling with perfectionism. We can discuss how perfectionism is affecting you and explore strategies to manage it.
Self-Help
Self-help resources can also be effective when it comes to less severe perfectionism.
Centre for Clinical Interventions: This website has self-help modules to help you with perfectionism.
If perfectionism is making it hard for you to enjoy life or causing undue stress, help is available. Together, we can explore various treatments and strategies to manage your perfectionism effectively.
I hope this information helps you take the first step toward embracing felxibility and finding greater satisfaction in life.
