TIP 125 Stop Letting Toxic Perfectionism Destroy Your Productivity and Happiness

Hey Design Sketcher!

Today, I’d like to share some thoughts on perfectionism, inspired by Elizabeth Grace Saunders, author of The 3 secrets to effective time investment).

How many students or professional designers struggle with perfectionist tendencies without realizing how much it harms their learning journey? Being a perfectionist can become an unnecessary source of stress that slows down progress and drains joy from the creative process.

Become a “Pragmatic Dreamer”

It’s great to be ambitious and hold yourself to high standards. But as a designer, you need to get things done.

Yes, you have to be a dreamer to be creative,
but you must also be pragmatic.

The sketches you see here, like those of Adidas sneakers, are full of imperfections—and that’s perfectly okay. Sketching fast and embracing imperfection comes with many benefits, including getting results quickly.

Learning how to draw is like learning a new language—it’s more effective and enjoyable to immerse yourself and start communicating rather than obsessing over perfect grammar before saying a word.

Draw and show your sketches to improve fast!
So, don’t be shy.
Stop hiding your drawings.

Keep making clumsy sketches! Love them!
They will get better by getting feedback from people,
so you know what to improve.

Does it makes sense? :)

Signs of Toxic Perfectionism

If you have a toxic perfectionist tendencies, you may:

• Think that settling is worse than not completing a project.
• See things either in black or white. If your sketch is perfect, awesome ! But most of the time, a tiny thing is enough to disturb the whole and make it feels like a failure. So you make a paper ball and like M. Jordan, you throw it in the paper basket. Too bad, it falls aside.
• Being stressed out of failing and being seen a failure or imposter.
• Abandon a project early.
• Procrastinate till the “perfect time” to start is ready.
  e.g. Wait for having plenty of time, have the perfect and newest version of iMac with the latest Photoshop, the sweetest graphic tablet of the market… instead we rather do else things. We end feeling guilty of not starting earlier.
  (Have you ever started to spend time at cleaning your room instead of starting your project ? If yes, question yourself why. ;) I did quite a lot !)
• Tend to start a project only after a TON of research of pictures and articles that we may actually NOT need… then end to be overwhelmed and unable to take any decision. So remain stuck at early stage of the project…

How to Stay Pragmatic and Productive

• Set minimum requirements by listing your top priorities and use your best resources to meet them.
• Focus on the end result and break the process into manageable steps with proper time management. Give yourself a margin of safety for unexpected delays.
• If you love researching, allocate a set time for it and stick to it. It is easy to keep doing infinite research, procrastinate and never deliver a final product.
• Learn to recognize when your work is good enough and know when to stop.
• Seek feedback early and often. If you can’t get it, remind yourself that when you do, you can filter and apply what’s useful.
• Celebrate your successes, no matter how small.
• Move on to the next project with your momentum.

Conclusion

Get things done, worry less, and deliver your creativity on time. Perfectionism can hold you back, but pragmatism moves you forward.

See more at: Failure is part of the learning process.
Know more about the Creative funnel system: The 5 phases of creativity in a Design company.

Are you perfectionist ?
If yes, let us know your impression, and how does it affects positively or negatively your experience.

See you guys for the next Tips !