Perfectly imperfect
Perfectly imperfect
We live in a society that puts perfection on a pedestal.
Social media like Instagram elevates perfection to another level.
But it is important to remember that being imperfect is perfect.
These are my 3️⃣ tidbits to think about imperfection.
1. Pursuing perfection can be limiting
The biggest thing I’ve learnt from having roles at opposite sides of the spectrum (i.e. lawyer to media spokesperson) is the value of giving it a go.
Sometimes, the easiest thing to do is to keep pursuing perfection in the same role (and there are occasions where that makes sense).
But for me, giving it a go in a completely different role taught me about embracing the discomfort of the unknown, learning from my mistakes and recognising that the limitations that put on yourself can be undone by doing hard things.
2. Perfectionism prevents passing knowledge
When I first started out being interviewed on TV, I was laser focused on replying with the perfect response.
Although the response was perfect, I was sounding like a robot and the message wasn’t connecting with the audience.
The connection with the audience happened when I stopped speaking like a robot and focused on how I wanted to pass on my knowledge with the audience.
As I like to say, K.Y.A - know your audience.
3. Perfectionism promotes playing it safe
The safe thing to do in doing a high stakes interview on TV was for me to just answer the question. The questions that I typically were received were in the context of tax (and what expenses people could claim or couldn’t claim).
But by letting go of perfectionism and by not playing it safe (and embracing risk by showing some personality and not caring about whether I deliver the perfect response), I improve the chances of people understanding the dry information I was sharing.
Here is a good example of this in action, where my delivery isn’t perfect, but I get across the messages that I want in a fun way, by being perfectly imperfect.
https://www.facebook.com/abcnews.au/videos/what-you-can-and-cant-claim-as-tax-time-approaches/1227110808089518/
Thought Provoking Quotes on this week’s topic
Marilyn Monroe
Imperfection is beauty, madness is genius, and it’s better to be absolutely ridiculous than absolutely boring.
Vince Lombardi
Perfection is not attainable, but if we chase perfection, we can catch excellence.