I read an interesting book last year called FYI: For Your Improvement, courtesy of my long lost Sri Lankan brother Udhara and his experience of a lifetime working at Apple.
Not just interesting, mind blowing. It completely changed my perception of myself and the world around me. I suddenly felt a much smaller man.
But I think I needed it.
My whole life I’ve existed as a self-professed perfectionist; embracing the psychology of perfectionism in everything I do.
I can happily spend hours shifting words around on a page, fiddling with colours and formatting in spreadsheets. Meticulously making sure every pixel is in its place.
I’ve always felt perfection is something to embrace, something to strive for. It produces wonder and beauty in all facets of life – from art to business and everything between. One of the finest qualities of all, perfectionism is a well-honed skill to take pride in.
You get the picture.
But actually, as this book from Udhara made me realise, perfectionism can be a wolf in sheep’s clothing. An excuse born from fear. The scapegoat that saves you from facing up to the possibility of failure, to stick with the farmyard animal references.