You’ve heard it repeatedly: Nobody is perfect. However, some of us aim to achieve perfection even when it’s not possible.
It is normal to have imperfections—they don’t mean that you can’t reach your goals or that you can’t aim higher.
What Is Power in Imperfection?
When you have a goal, it’s about completion, not perfection. Whether you are starting a business or planning to eat healthier, it’s better to be strategic than to aim to do everything right.
An effective strategy is to follow someone who did things right. You can adopt the same techniques they did or improvise on their process so you can achieve a similar goal. Learning from the experiences of those who have succeeded will accelerate your learning curve. You can learn from their imperfections, too.
But while you may benefit from following in your idols’ footsteps, it’s worth noting that your path will not be exactly the same as theirs. There are internal and external influences and experiences that will impact your own growth curve.
To successfully and efficiently adapt their strategies, you must be aware of your imperfections.
What Is Needed vs. What Is Optimal
Learning from others is good. However, you have to be wary about comparing your success with that of others.
The danger of comparison is that you are starting on a different foot than the people you look up to. They had different skills and resources when they began compared to yours. If you don’t get the same outcome they did, you may feel that you did something wrong along the way.
What is the importance of imperfection? It tells you that there are many lessons to be learned and connections to be made.
Understanding What You Need to Achieve Success
For example, your most important goal for the new year is to improve your health. Maybe you want to buy a new pair of shoes for running and new food containers and cooking implements for weekly meal prep.
But do you actually need these things? A new pair of running shoes would do wonders for your fitness journey, but they are not necessary if you just bought a pair in the last year or so. New kitchenware and lunchboxes will make your meal prep more fun to photograph, but is there any reason why you can’t use what you already have in your home?
Being conscious of the difference between what is needed and what is optimal will help you make the right decisions when mapping out your strategy to achieve your goals.
Here are two examples:
Starting a Business
Entrepreneurs are obsessed with optimization. They are eager to spend money on hiring branding professionals to create logos and marketing materials, even if they have very limited capital.
Just because the brand you idolize achieved its business goals with a professional-looking logo and a branded Instagram account doesn’t mean you must follow its process step-by-step. Consider your available resources and use them wisely.
Eating Healthy
Your favorite health guru tells you to only eat organic fruits and vegetables and grass-fed beef. However, these products are much more expensive than regular fruits, vegetables, and meat. If you can’t afford them, don’t go bankrupt trying to follow advice.
Eating healthy is about maintaining a balanced diet. You can simply regulate your food intake and buy fruits, vegetables, meat, poultry, and other ingredients that you can afford and will deliver optimal nutrients.
Start With an Imperfect Strategy
How do you accept imperfections in life? You do it knowing that there is plenty of time and opportunity to improve.
Obsessing over the perfect techniques will prevent you from completing your goals on your own terms. Start working today, no matter how imperfect your starting point is.
