When we set the bar high, we leave ourselves with a long way to “fall” if our goals aren’t met. This mindset doesn’t have to be viewed as negative; rather, it’s about being realistic and making sure you have to have the courage to deal with setbacks. The modern world is widespread dissatisfaction. Whatever we do, and whatever we achieve, we’re never pleased; sometimes, these perfectionistic tendencies might even seem like an inherent part of the human condition. When I once asked a very successful businessman how much enough was, he said that there is no such thing as enough in his life. He only concentrates on the word more, which he thinks is perfect.
Nowadays, we all edit our photos before posting them on social media because we want everything to be flawless. Amazingly, we have begun to look for perfection in our relationships in addition to our need for a perfect house, job, outfit, makeup, and so forth. I often hear from folks that their life would be wonderful if only their spouses or partners, and children were perfect. How frequently do you hear your friends say, “My life will be perfect if this or that happens”? Believe me, they are caught in a perfection trap.
While writing this article, I checked for grammatical errors several times and ensured that the sentence patterns in this article are perfect. What name should I call the subject of my article “perfection trap or something else? This left me in a dilemma. Apart from the perfection trap, a few other topics are also discussed in this article, thus I wasn’t sure if the topic would be justified. Here, I understood that while writing, I was also seeking perfection. I thus made the decision to withhold the title, which helped me feel that I am not a victim of the perfection trap.
Many people nowadays are extremely cautious, frightened of making mistakes, and only concerned with the perfect end result. As a result, we are unable to appreciate the process of trying, learning, and growing. One of my friends is making every effort to get her son accepted into one of the prestigious institutions in the Nation. She has suddenly decided that enrolling her son in that school is her new dream. What I’m curious about is, since when have people begun to consider these kinds of materialistic possessions to be their dream?
I have an entirely different idea of what a dream is☺. She responded that the school produces perfect pupils, so by the time his son graduates, he will be a perfect human being. She predicted that children will make significant academic progress while also excelling in many extracurricular activities like sports, music, and foreign languages, this took me by surprise. This is what I refer to as “the perfectionist trap”. “What about the Process?” Isn’t enjoying the process more essential than the end result? This is something we can all relate to since we are all so focused on the perfect future that we forget to appreciate the present, which prevents us from appreciating each and every accomplishment. This is such an important step towards real happiness, but one that we often neglect. Are we all forgetting that celebrating our own successes is incredibly good for us?
Perfectionism can have negative unexpected effects. From the first day we step into this world we are inspired to chase perfection. It is only in the later stages of life we come to the realization that there is no such thing as ‘Perfect’ in this world.
Apara Thapa Bhattarai
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