How To let Go Of Perfection
This post is Day #2 of the 31 Days to a Better Work + Life Balance series!
I love when my friends let me see their house in its messy state.
This isn't because I want them to be disorganized or so that I feel better about myself and my own mess haha.
I love it because it reminds me how little perfection matters.
The Inner Critic
Perfectionism is kind of like a nagging parent who is never pleased. We hear this voice inside saying things like, "It HAS to be done like this. Nope still not good enough. Missed a spot. When will you ever get it right?"
I think sometimes we don't even realized that we are killing ourselves to work toward an invisible standard, listening to this inner critic. We can't rest until everything is done. And if we know we could have done better, we subconsiously label ourselves failure.
I wanted to start off the series talking about this before moving on to organizing, prioritizing and any other goals. No amount of effort will do any good if we're aiming for perfect.
If perfect is the goal, we will always be behind, always stressed and unhappy with our work. And honestly, I think most of the time the only one who CARES about perfect is us. Like in the case of a messy house, who is usually getting stressed about it? It's usually the owner, right?
Visitors don't care. They know that sometimes they go home to messes too. It might even make them feel a little more normal and at ease.
How to let it go:
If you're wrestling with this inner critic today, here are a few steps to take...
1. Decide what will be good enough.
What is actually needed and what is just being picky? Only worry about finishing today's work. Save tomorrow's work for tomorrow and then just do what needs to be done, trying your best to be proud of the GOOD.
2. Remember what you're worth
If you knew even a little how valuable you are as a person, I think it would blow you away. You are NOT valuable because of how put together you are, how perfect your hair looks, or how many followers you have. You are NOT valuable because of what you are able to get done.
So let that give you a little freedom today.
You can still be awesome even if your cooking fails or if your kids' socks don't match.
3. Let His perfection shine in your weakness
Sometimes I think we beg for the hard stuff to be taken away. We just want everything to fall into place and let our hard work be enough. But God says, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." 2 Cor. 12:9
We can't do it all and do everything perfectly.
We can't work hard enough to make ourselves better.
When we can't, He can. He is the only one who doesn't have limits. So let his power shine though your weakness and redeem it. That's one of the things He does best:)
Let's lay all of our heaviness and to-dos at His feet today.
