If you want to achieve growth, focus on progress and not perfection. 3 ways to focus on progress to grow your potential.
Over the past year, I have struggled with my imperfections as I embarked on my new endeavours to teach mindfulness through creativity. With decades of experience in corporate education and development, teaching incredibly soft skills like mindfulness and creativity outside of the corporate setting has challenged me to adapt.
The high standards I hold for myself in producing corporate training experiences to perfection were driving me to madness as I piloted my new hobbyist workshops. I was stressing over finding the perfect venue, the perfect setup, the perfect materials, and on and on and on the list continued.
At the same time, I was scrutinizing my workshop content design, teaching methodologies and my artistic abilities to demonstrate meditative line art. I was pushing myself to be perfect on the first try, even though I knew these were pilot sessions for me to learn and develop my workshops.
Moreover, my personal purpose to share mindfulness is passionately important to me which put even more pressure on me to want perfection in executing my workshops.
My old habits and primitive brain fear reaction to newness and uncertainty were clouding my ability to enjoy the process and focus on progress to achieve new potential and growth.
So I had to kick myself in the ass (hard) and take the coaching advice that I have given so many...focus on progress, not perfection. If I am clear on my intention, prepare well and trust in my abilities, the progress and results will come.
"Progress requires setbacks; the only sure way to avoid failure is not to try."
Henry Spencer
Mariam-Webster Dictionary defines perfectionism as "a disposition to regard anything short of perfection as unacceptable."
When we strive for perfection, we hold ourselves to impossibly high standards and leave no room for imperfections and mistakes. The focus is on only getting the perfect result. Because perfectionism standards are so unattainably high, the stress of mistakes can lead to many negative effects on self-worth, relationships and even your overall health.
When we focus on progress, we are holding ourselves to high standards that stretch and motivate us to produce quality work with attainable results. The focus is on the process of achieving results, which includes learning, collaborating, and recognizing accomplishments and mistakes throughout the process.
So if you are inclined to perfectionism and find it hard to let go, here are 3 ways to focus on progress so you can grow your potential.
1. Break Progress Down Into Buildable Parts
It's good to have a great purpose, a grand plan and a big goal for a project, but only focusing on the big picture can be overwhelming. We can overlook potential and possibilities when we are too focused on the rush to the finish line.
When we break down the big picture into actionable bite-size pieces, we are creating achievable milestones where we can pause, reflect, reassess and celebrate our progress along the way.
For example, my purpose for launching my Mindful Creativity Workshop is to help people build mindfulness and creativity through assessable meditative art techniques. That's a pretty big ask.
If I only focus on my purpose, it's a very lofty place to start. I had to ask myself to get specific on what I wanted to achieve with my pilot workshops.
Create a workshop to introduce mindfulness and meditative art to beginners.
Create lesson plans that would be non-intimidating, easily digestible, fun and relaxing.
Format the workshop to set up attendees for success in completing their art pieces.
Test and trial my new facilitation skills for meditative art.
Gain feedback on what worked and what needs to change.
Build and grow a community for meditative art.
Connect with attendees and enjoy myself.
Then I set the milestones that I wanted to achieve.
Create and conduct 2-3 introduction workshops to various demographics of attendees, professionals and hobbyists.
Create and conduct different themed workshops to incorporate new elements to the art attendees could create.
Create YouTube videos where attendees can revisit content and learn more.
Once I broke down the progress I wanted into bitesize specifics, I could focus on progressing through them one by one. Along the way, I have learned so much about how to help attendees gain more out of my workshops and what they would like to experience in the future. I have also gained confidence in my new skills and abilities. Don't forget to celebrate milestones along the way.
2. Be Open to Feedback For Progress
Getting objective feedback is an important part of progress.
It's not comfortable to hear constructive feedback, but being open to all feedback is what sparks progress. Getting objective feedback from people you trust can help to open up new possibilities too.
In my experience as a manager, coach and mentor, people often ask for feedback but may not be open to receiving it unless it's positive. Building up the courage to ask and be open to receiving positive and constructive feedback is crucial to progress and growth.
We are often too close to our work and too emotionally invested, especially in the projects that matter to us, to see things truly objectively. It's important to ask for specific and clear feedback with targeted questions instead of the casual, "What did you think?"
In my pilot workshops with invited attendees, I set the expectation upfront that I would be asking for feedback after their workshop experience. My feedback questions were phrased neutrally and asked for specifics on different aspects from the venue, to the seating layout, the pace, content and then overall comments.
The insights I gained from my attendees are invaluable. When people are generous with their time and effort, it is a true gift. So solicited or not, thank people for taking the time to give you feedback. It's an important part of progress.
3. Be Kind to Yourself as You Progress
There are times when I feel like I have accomplished nothing despite all the hard work and effort I have put in. There are days when I feel like the progress is too slow. There are days when I question if I have what it takes to make the difference that I want to make with my blog, my business and my new endeavours in spreading self-development, self-care and mindfulness.
This happens when I take progress for granted or get caught up in comparing myself to what others have achieved. It also happens when I look at how much more there is to do in order to achieve my goals.
That's when I remind myself to breathe and be mindful. Don't judge and enjoy the process. Show self-compassion and know that I am worthy of the time and effort that I am investing in my progression.
We all progress differently and at a different pace. Some phases of progress require more time and the results may not be immediately apparent. Remember that as long as you are taking steps (forward, sideways or backward) and growing your skills, it will be worth the effort.
A Life in Progress...
"There is progress whether you are going forward or backward! The thing is to move!"
Edgar Cayce
In a world that promotes perfection, it's easy to fall into the mindset of chasing after it. If we expect perfection, we will inevitably be disappointed. Bloopers and mistakes are part of life no matter how much we try to prevent them.
When we strive for progress, we allow ourselves to take risks, make mistakes, and learn from them to improve and grow. Without the pressure to be perfect, we unlock potential and creativity.
Life is seldomly perfect, but it will always be in progress.
So don't limit yourself with the pressures of perfection and opt for opportunities by focusing on progress instead.
Articles that may also interest you:
Adopt a Beginner's Mindset and Discover New Possibilities - Online Article - AYCLimitless.com
Perfectionism: 10 Signs of Perfectionist Traits - Online Article - verywellmind.com
How to Manage Your Perfectionism - Online Article - HBR.org
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