One of the biggest problems that professionals face with their productivity is that they have too high standards… I know, weird, right?
What I mean by that is that the standards they set for their projects or products are so high that they can barely ever be met. They end up missing deadlines and sometimes never actually complete the project.
The idea of perfectionism is quite well-ingrained in Australian professional culture. Having extremely high ideals to the point that we barely ever meet them, is actually one of the biggest productivity roadblocks. In essence, what perfectionism is, is creating an ideal that can barely ever be met.
Perfectionism, I think, is sometimes just avoiding responsibility. We create these super high standards that lets us off the hook from actually taking responsibility for a standard that can be met. It’s an elegant justification for not taking action. Releasing the product. Getting feedback from the real customer.
One idea for getting more done:
Have realistic standards. Create standards that are actually realistic. Release your 1.0 version before releasing your 2.0 and 3.0 versions. A lot of the time, professionals get obsessed about releasing a product that is actually their 3.0 version before they have released their 1.0.
Many of us have an iPhone or an iPod. The truth is, you wouldn’t have one in your hand unless Apple decided to release 1.0. 1.0 had a lot of challenges, issues and limitations, but it was good enough to be released.
So embrace realistic standards and release your 1.0.
Discover the secrets of the Super Productive.
Join Colin for a free masterclass on productivity.
In this training, you’ll discover:
- How to create a Super Productive Mindset (the exact thinking you must have to produce incredible results)
- The secret to leveraged energy – this is like a Red Bull for your daily productivity
- 3 critical brain rules – and how you can use them to work with your brain, not against it