A few years ago, I spoke with a woman who had been working on her book for five years.
When I asked why she hadn’t pulled the trigger on it, she gave a lot of reasons. She’d been busy at work, needed to take care of her mom who was sick, broken up with her boyfriend, etc.
But what it really came down to was… doubt.
Doubt the book would succeed. Doubt that all the work would be worth it. Doubt about what other people would think.
I told her, “Perfectionism kills creativity. Put a date on the calendar. Until you do, your project will never get done. You’ll just keep coming up with reasons to put it aside.”
She said, “But how will I know when it’s ready?”
“You won’t! You just need to decide to get it out the door. You just need to get crystal clear that you’ll regret it if you don’t finish it.”
I added, “My favorite line from Tina Fey’s book Bossypants was when she was rushing to finish a skit in her first year at SNL and Lorne Michaels told her to wrap it up.
She protested, ‘But it’s not ready.’
Lorne laughed and said, ‘Tina, the show doesn’t go on because it’s ready. It goes on because it’s 11:30.”
It’s time for you to pick an 11:30 for your project.
ACTION
- Are you letting perfectionism stop you from publishing that course, content, book, business, or brand?
- If so, I’ve collected some of my favorite quotes about perfectionism, procrastination, and creative work that I hope will inspire you.
- Pick your favorite and print or write it out… Then post it where you can see it every day to remind yourself that your content may be just what someone needs to see, hear, or be reminded of THAT DAY.
P.S. Want more ways to put perfectionism in its place? Read my LinkedIn article for tips to move from stuck to success and click +Follow for more ways to keep your momentum flowing.