In 5 steps away from your perfectionism: it is possible

Perfectionism is a handicap. There, I said it. It holds you back, sabotages your speed, and makes your life unnecessarily complicated. And despite the fact that perfectionism also has its good sides (you strive for the highest achievable, see more than others, and challenge yourself to go for the maximum), it is downright exhausting.

Because you demand too much from yourself, a lot of energy leaks away. Yes, it can also be a little less. Do you feel that your need for control sometimes works against you? Then it's time to intervene. How? Like this.

Step 1: Become aware of your perfectionistic behavior
Recognizing your perfectionism is step 1. How? For example, because your inner critic (hi, whiner!) is never satisfied. You also regularly receive comments from others about this. ‘Just let it go’; you hear that phrase quite often. You also tend to worry a lot and postpone choices and difficult things.

Step 2: Reflect on your thoughts
Did you know that mainly fear keeps perfectionism alive? Fear of letting go. Fear of not being good enough. Fear of failing. The urge for control is one way to deal with that fear. Another way is – you wouldn't expect it – to do nothing. Just let the thoughts that go through your head pass by, like clouds in the sky. Analyze your thoughts and don't judge them. Acknowledge them, accept them, and then let them go. This brings me to the next point.

Step 3: Be a little kinder to yourself, come on
It's easy, isn't it, to be hard on yourself and set the bar extremely high. Meanwhile, you are a lot more relaxed for someone else – even in the same situation. Decide from now on to be just as kind to yourself as you are to others.

Step 4: Stop with the negative what-if thoughts
As a perfectionist, you are obsessed with all the little details. Everything. Must. Be. Right. Because otherwise, someone might point out that it's not good enough. What if this, what if that, maybe like this... The chance that the disasters in your head actually happen is small. And if something does go wrong, you'll solve it by then. Oh, and newsflash: you never build anything positive from negative energy. From now on, focus on your strengths and talents, just see what effect that has.

Step 5: The 70 percent rule
Have you ever thought that you can also be very satisfied with a 7 instead of always striving for that 10? In fact, if you stop chasing that 10, you will probably get to a lot more cool projects. Besides: no one notices if you have given 70 percent of yourself. Perfection is different for everyone. Maybe ‘your 7’ is someone else's 10. Ha. Give a new meaning to perfection and enjoy a more relaxed and organized feeling in your head.