The Pros and Cons of Perfectionism

Do you set yourself impossible standards and get upset when you don’t meet them? Do you feel like you need to be in control all the time? Do you feel that even when you try your best, it’s ‘not good enough’? If you answered yes to any of these questions, chances are you are dealing with perfectionism.

Perfectionism is a mixed blessing. It can motivate you to get a lot of things done to a high standard but it can also increase procrastination and lead you to set unachievable goals. Some of the positive traits associated with perfectionism include: being detail oriented, conscientious, organised, enthusiastically driven, eager to give a good impression, hard working and delivering high quality work. Now - who doesn’t want those things? They sound quite nice don’t they? On top of that, people offer praise and rewards for perfectionism. In a workplace for example, you might be a dedicated person, motivated to work longer hours to get the job done, which may in turn lead to promotion or other achievements. So surely your perfectionism must be a good thing. However what we’ve learnt about perfectionism is that some of the things that benefit you also cost you.

Let’s have a look at some of the pros and cons.

Positive traits of perfectionism	Cons of perfectionism
Being detail oriented	You risk fixating too much on details and end up missing the big picture. This can be time intensive and inefficient.
Being conscientious	We take too long to finish things as we never reach a ‘good enough’ level.
Craving order and organisation	We struggle to compromise or think outside the box when something unexpected happens. We can become rigid and inflexible.
Being driven to achieve	Too much drive can lead to burnout.
Eagerness to give a good impression	This can lead to people pleasing, not saying no to things or being clear about what we actually think and feel. It can lead us to prioritise other’s needs over our own.
Being hard working	This can lead to over-work or exhaustion
Determination to deliver high quality work	Always striving for perfection means we might end up missing deadlines as we never reach ‘good enough’.

So let me challenge you now - is your perfectionism costing you more than it’s worth? Are the drawbacks on your health, wellbeing, relationships and performance at work larger than any high you get from the achievements of your perfectionism? There is still a way to strive towards excellence and to be kind to others that doesn’t come with the same costs. There’s research to support that a perfectionistic mindset is associated with higher rates of anxiety and depression. Fears about failing and making mistakes can actually hinder your ability to focus on and complete tasks leading to lower self-esteem and procrastination. There are ways to set more attainable goals and to be kinder to yourself and others in turn. To find that balance can be anxiety provoking and difficult to navigate at first. We are here to help.

Perfectionism is defined as “the tendency to demand of others or of oneself an extremely high or even flawless level of performance, in excess of what is required by the situation”, by the American Psychological Association.

Beheshtifar, M., Mazrae-Sefidi, F., & Nekoie Moghadam, M. (2011). Role of perfectionism at workplace. European Journal of Economics, Finance and Administrative Sciences, 38, 167-173.

Burke, R. J., Davis, R. A., & Flett, G. L. (2008). Workaholism Types-Perfectionism and Work Outcomes. ISGUC The Journal of Industrial Relations and Human Resources, 10(4), 30-40.

Dunkley, D. M., Zuroff, D. C., & Blankstein, K. R. (2003). Self-critical perfectionism and daily affect: dispositional and situational influences on stress and coping. Journal of personality and social psychology, 84(1), 234.