I am convinced that perfection is an invention of the devil.
At a very early age, I became addicted to perfection. My mom once told me that, as a kid, I wouldn’t start drawing until my crayons were all lined up perfectly - labels up - along the top edge of my coloring book. She also went on to say that this compulsive preparation would often last longer than time spent actually laying down color.
While this was all quite amusing to my mother, it was an early glimpse at my malfunctioning relationship with perfection.
As we all learn quickly, life is a little harder than keeping within the lines with your well-kept Crayolas. Everyday, the tests get a little harder and the results mean a little more. And as life's degree of difficulty continues to increase, the ability to be perfect decreases accordingly.
And this is where the devil has earned his horns.
One's desire for perfection often stands defiantly in the face of one's ability to achieve it. In fact, the ever increasing rarity of perfection only bolsters the craving. This, in turn, leaves one less and less likely to recognize their achievements. And when faced with the fear of possibly making another mistake, performance is greatly handicapped if the person risks performing at all.
At a very early age, I became addicted to perfection. My mom once told me that, as a kid, I wouldn’t start drawing until my crayons were all lined up perfectly - labels up - along the top edge of my coloring book. She also went on to say that this compulsive preparation would often last longer than time spent actually laying down color.While this was all quite amusing to my mother, it was an early glimpse at my malfunctioning relationship with perfection.
As we all learn quickly, life is a little harder than keeping within the lines with your well-kept Crayolas. Everyday, the tests get a little harder and the results mean a little more. And as life's degree of difficulty continues to increase, the ability to be perfect decreases accordingly.
And this is where the devil has earned his horns.
One's desire for perfection often stands defiantly in the face of one's ability to achieve it. In fact, the ever increasing rarity of perfection only bolsters the craving. This, in turn, leaves one less and less likely to recognize their achievements. And when faced with the fear of possibly making another mistake, performance is greatly handicapped if the person risks performing at all.For the fortunate, the measurement of success has little to do with the proximity to perfection. For me, success and perfection have become married. And this has proven to be one of the few marriages in this world where the two parties remain committed to eachother.
A long time ago the devil spotted me dime bag of perfection. And to this day I haven't been able to shake the habit. He is my pusher man, reveling in the wake of frustration left by his cursed little invention.
And it ticks me off.
And it ticks me off.
1 comment:
Perfection is completely subjective and an illusion we create within ourselves.
Some want to strive to achieve perfection as, for them, it translates into success.
Others keep perfection as a possibility but only something that could be achieved but won't because it would require the individual's 100%, unabated attention and effort.
And what happens when you find out your perfection ... just isn't good enough?
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