The Polishing Dance

Published on
February 17, 2014
Author
Chris Taylor
"Ideas are only valuable when applied."
Subscribe to digest
Read about our privacy policy.
Thank you! Your submission has been received!
Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.

One of the things I often wrestle with is the balance between shipping (pushing that project live) and perfectionism. Between knowing that nothing really counts in this world until you’ve pressed “print”, and knowing that I could always make it better.

Srini’s recently published book exalts the merits of being “raw”; of being personality filled sanding off the edges, while Szymanski explores the pros and cons of perfectionism. And both have valid arguments. So where’s the balance?

For me, I believe it’s in shifting my thinking around what it means to be perfect. And doing so by thinking about perfection in the eyes of my target audience; the people I really want my message/project/program/etc. to resonate with. It’s about feeling that whatever I’m shipping is an accurate representation of what I set out to accomplish in the first place. And being ok with the fact that it won’t resonate with everyone. Because if my message is clear enough – if it’s on-point enough, and focused in a way that truly resonates with someone on a visceral level – then by default, it’s not going to resonate with most people. And maybe that fits a new paradigm of perfection.