Don't Let This Productivity Killer Sneak up on You

Last week I posted here about what I believe to be one of the first steps in becoming more productive: assembling as many of your regular recurring tasks as possible and assigning them a specific order and time – i.e. making some routines that put these tasks on autopilot. In theory, this frees up valuable creative energy and time for more challenging efforts.

That sounds great, but I bet I know what happened next. You began documenting your routine and then found yourself in the quagmire of perfectionism. I won’t say how I know this happens, but I know this happens.

You start making a list. You arrange and rearrange. You ponder the proper order. You debate what to include and what to leave out. Before you know it, you’ve spent more time thinking about what you do than doing what you do. We all want to do our jobs well, but perfectionism is one of the biggest productivity killers around. That’s right. Perfectionism and her side-kick, All-or-Nothing are crippling smart, talented people all over the place.

Part of the reason that these two are so insidious is that they masquerade as admirable qualities. Don’t get me wrong – I’m all for excellence, and I think more people could achieve it if they didn’t actually take pride in their perfectionism AND use it as a crutch for never getting anything done.

So how to get around it? Simple. Start recognizing perfectionism for what is is: the gateway drug for procrastination. Instead, jump in there and (as Nike says) just do it. Most times, something is better than nothing.

Understand that the need to be “perfect” or have something done “just so or not at all” is not making you better at your job. Doing, succeeding, failing, reviewing, learning - experiencing work makes you better at your job. So get to work, and tell perfectionism she can take a hike.