Perfection is the enemy of progress

Abstract

People that push for perfection often harm progress. In their effort to create the perfect output, they often fail to deliver important results. A perfectionism orientation is particularly bad for managers. Such an orientation can suck the lifeblood out of organizations. Nonetheless, people that push for perfection are all around us, especially in bureaucratic cost centers, where the forms and processes that are foisted onto the productive, customer-focused people are generated. Perfectionism encourages skill at creating a labyrinth of processes and procedures, and expertise in “petty perfectionism”. Over emphasis on perfection can destroy motivation, stifle progress, lower productivity, and drain resources from productive work. With all of that said, perfectionism can contribute to organizational success, but striving for perfection must be circumscribed and put in the service of progress. True leaders know that progress, not perfection, is the appropriate target for the health of the organization. Short term progress, coupled with long term perfection-striving, is what keeps the wheels of the organization turning.