Hey everyone!

Perfectionism is a silent killer, but there are several ways to break through it.

The signs of perfectionism are often insidious and easily missed. They can manifest in every aspect of your life, and can lead to feelings of stagnation

In this newsletter I’ll share how I recognise perfectionism in my life and some strategies to overcome it.

In medicine, I notice perfectionism the most when I’m targeting areas I know I’m weaker in, like metabolic derangements for example.

I’ll tell myself that I need a larger block of time to study it, and that I should revise something else first before I progress to it.

This is perfectionism. Creating ideal conditions in which I should work stops me from getting the work done.

Procrastination is a natural extension of perfectionism. Telling myself that I should wait until 3:30 on the dot to start studying opens me up to getting distracted.

Here are three solutions that I’ve been using to consistently break through this barrier.

Lower the Bar

Perfectionism originates from the desire to produce a finished product from the moment we start. However, this creates undue pressure that paralyses us.

The solution here is to create a product that is far from finished. Measure your progress in terms of quantity, rather than quality, which incentivises you to produce more, rather than less.

Edit it later

This may create theoretically lower quality work, but my mantra is that you can always edit it later.

Often, you might find that the work you created was not as bad as you thought, or that looking at your work with fresh eyes helps you think of new ideas.

Do it now

When fighting perfectionism, the tendency is to want to constantly research. This can take the form of watching YouTube, planning, reaching out to others and telling other people about your goals.

The problem is that no amount of research can prepare you for the real-world barriers that arise when you approach anything.

The only way to overcome these barriers is to face them in the moment, and to push through, reflect and learn from the experience.

I have to constantly remind myself that while research has its place, action is what leads to progress.

Good luck!

Emil