Perfectionism, in psychology, is a personality trait
characterized by a person's striving for flawlessness and setting
excessively high performance standards, accompanied by overly critical
self-evaluations and concerns regarding others' evaluations.[1][2]
It is best conceptualized as a multidimensional characteristic, as
psychologists agree that there are many positive and negative aspects.[3] In its maladaptive form, perfectionism drives people to attempt to achieve an unattainable ideal, and their adaptive
perfectionism can sometimes motivate them to reach their goals. In the
end, they derive pleasure from doing so. When perfectionists do not
reach their goals, they often fall into depression.
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Causes of Perfectionism
If you are a perfectionist, it is likely that you learned early in life that other people valued you because of how much you accomplished or achieved. As a result you may have learned to value yourself only on the basis of other people’s approval. Thus your self-esteem may have come to be based primarily on external standards. This can leave you vulnerable and excessively sensitive to the opinions and criticism of others. In attempting to protect yourself from such criticism, you may decide that being perfect is your only defense.A number of the following negative feelings, thoughts, and beliefs may be associated with perfectionism:
- Fear of failure. Perfectionists often equate failure to achieve their goals with a lack of personal worth or value.
- Fear of making mistakes. Perfectionists often equate mistakes with failure. In orienting their lives around avoiding mistakes, perfectionists miss opportunities to learn and grow.
- Fear of disapproval. If they let others see their flaws, perfectionists often fear that they will no longer be accepted. Trying to be perfect is a way of trying to protect themselves from criticism, rejection, and disapproval.
- All-or-none thinking. Perfectionists frequently believe that they are worthless if their accomplishments are not perfect. Perfectionists have difficulty seeing situations in perspective. For example, a straight “A” student who receives a “B” might believe, “I am a total failure.”
- Overemphasis on “shoulds.” Perfectionists’ lives are often structured by an endless list of “shoulds” that serve as rigid rules for how their lives must be led. With such an overemphasis on shoulds, perfectionists rarely take into account their own wants and desires.
- Believing that others are easily successful. Perfectionists tend to perceive others as achieving success with a minimum of effort, few errors, emotional stress, and maximum self-confidence. At the same time, perfectionists view their own efforts as unending and forever inadequate.
What is perfectionism?
Perfectionism is:* the irrational belief that you and/or your environment must be perfect
* the striving to be the best, to reach the ideal and to never make a mistake
* an all pervasive attitude that whatever you attempt in life must be done letter perfect with no deviation, mistakes, slip-ups or inconsistencies
* a habit developed from youth that keeps you constantly alert to the imperfections, failings, and weakness in yourself and others
* a level of consciousness that keeps you ever vigilant to any deviations from the norm, the guidelines or the way things are "supposed to be"
* the underlying motive present in the fear of failure and fear of rejection, i.e., if I am not perfect I will fail and/or I will be rejected by others
* a reason why you may be fearful of success, i.e., if I achieve my goal, will I be able to continue, maintain that level of achievement
* a rigid, moralistic outlook that does not allow for humanism or imperfection
* an inhibiting factor that keeps you from making a commitment to change habitual, unproductive behavior out of fear of not making the change "good enough"
* the belief that no matter what you attempt it is never "good enough" to meet your own or others' expectations
What irrational beliefs contribute to perfectionism?
* Everything in life must be done to your level of perfection, which is often higher than anyone else's.
* It is unacceptable to make a mistake.
* You must always reach the ideal no matter what.
* If those in authority say this is the way it is supposed to be, then that is the way it is supposed to be.
* You are a loser if you cannot be perfect.
* It is what you achieve rather than who you are that is important.
* I have no value in life unless I am successful.
* There is no sense in trying to do something unless I can do it perfectly, e.g., "I don't attempt things I can't do well."
* If I have a failure or experience a set back in my efforts to change then I should give up.
* The ideal is what is real; unless I reach the ideal I am a failure.
* There are so many roadblocks and pitfalls to keep me from succeeding. It is better just to give up and forget my goal.
* Unless I am "Number One," there is no sense in trying. Everyone knows what "Number Two" is. To win is the only acceptable goal.
* If you screw up in your efforts to achieve a goal, just give up. It must be too hard to achieve.
* You must always strive to reach the ideal in everything you do because it is in the achievement of the ideal that you give meaning to your life.
* Don't ever let anyone know what goal you're working on. That way they won't consider you a failure if you don't reach it.
* If you can't do it right the first time, why try to do it at all?
* There is only one way to reach a goal: the right way.
* It takes too much effort and energy to reach a goal. I save myself the aggravation and discouragement by not setting goals for myself.
* I'll never be able to change and grow the way I want to, so why try?
* I am a human being prone to error, frailty and imperfections; therefore, I won't be able to accomplish things in a perfect or ideal way. I'll just give up on achieving any of my goals or desires.
What are some negative consequences of perfectionism?
Examples of the negative consequences of perfectionism include:
Low self-esteem. Because a perfectionist never feels "good enough" about personal performance, feelings of being a "failure" or a "loser" with a lessening of self-confidence and self-esteem may result.
Guilt. Because a perfectionist never feels good about the way responsibility has been handled in life (by himself or others) a sense of shame, self-recrimination and guilt may result.
Pessimism. Since a perfectionist is convinced that it will be extremely difficult to achieve an ideal goal, he can easily become discouraged, fatalistic, disheartened and pessimistic about future efforts to reach a goal.
Depression. Needing always to be perfect, yet recognizing that it is impossible to achieve such a goal, a perfectionist runs the risk of feeling depressed.
Rigidity. Needing to have everything in one's life perfect or "just so" can lead a perfectionist to an extreme case of being inflexible, non-spontaneous and rigid.
Obsessiveness. Being in need of an excessive amount of order, pattern or structure in life can lead a perfectionist to become nit-picky, finicky or obsessive in an effort to maintain a certain order.
Compulsive behavior. Over-indulgence or the compulsive use of alcohol, drugs, gambling, food, shopping, sex, smoking, risk-taking or novelty, is often used to medicate a perfectionist who feels like a failure or loser for never being able to be "good enough" in life.
Lack of motivation. Believing that the goal of change will never be able to be ideally or perfectly achieved can often give a perfectionist a lack of motivation to attempt change in the first place, or to persevere if change has already begun.
Immobilization. Because a perfectionist is often burdened with an extreme fear of failure, the person can become immobilized. With no energy, effort or creative juices applied to rectify, improve or change the problem behavior in the person's life, he becomes stagnant.
Lack of belief in self. Knowing that one will never be able to achieve an idyllic goal can lead a perfectionist to lose the belief that he will ever be able to improve his life significantly.
What rational behaviors are needed to overcome perfectionist tendencies?
To overcome perfectionism one needs to:
* accept self as a human being
* forgive self for mistakes or failings
* put self back on the wagon immediately after falling off
* accept that the ideal is only a guideline or goal to be worked toward, not to be achieved 100 percent
* set realistic and flexible time frames for the achievement of a goal
* develop a sense of patience and to reduce the need to "get it done yesterday"
* be easier on oneself; setting unrealistic or unreasonable goals or deadlines sets you up for failure
* recognize that the human condition is one of failings, weakness, deviations, imperfections and mistakes; it is acceptable to be human
* recognize that one's backsliding does not mean the end of the world; it is OK to pick oneself up and start all over again
* develop an ability to use "thought stopping" techniques whenever you find yourself mentally scolding yourself for not being "good enough"
* visualize reality as it will be for a human rather than for a super human
* learn to accept yourself the way you are; let go of the ideas of how you should be
* enjoy success and achievement with a healthy self-pride, and eliminate the need for self-deprecation or false humility
* learn to enjoy success without the need to second guess your ability to sustain the achievement
* reward yourself for your progress, to reinforce your efforts to change even when progress is slight or doesn't meet up to your idealistic expectations
* love yourself; to believe that you deserve good things
* to eliminate unrealistic expectations and the idea that you are infallible
* visualize yourself as "winning" even when it takes more energy, and more perseverance, than what you had planned
* let go of rigid, moralistic judgments of your performance and to develop an open, compassionate understanding for the hard times, obstacles and temptations
* be flexible in setting goals and be willing to reassess your plan from time to time to keep things realistic
* be open to the idea that you will be successful in your efforts to change, even if you are not "first," "the best," "the model," "the star pupil," "the exemplar" or "the finest"
* realize that the important thing is to be going in a positive direction
Social support systems can help you overcome perfectionism if you:
* select realistic people who are not perfectionists in their own life
* encourage your support system members to not be rigid or moralistic in their attempts to keep you on an honest course
* have support people who role model forgiving and forgetting when mistakes, failures, offenses or backsliding occur
* have given them permission to call you on being too hard, too brutal, too rigid, too unrealistic or too idealistic in your expectations
* have people who will give positive reinforcement for any positive change, no matter how small or slight it is
* select trustworthy people who are open, honest, and have a sincere interest in your personal growth
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