Winning in Imperfection
Try as hard as we may for perfection, the net result of our labours is an amazing variety of imperfectness. We are surprised at our own versatility, in being able to fail in so many different ways.
-Samuel MacChord Crothers
The proliferation of the “how to” resources is doing very well to place a higher than necessary emphasis on those things that we cannot attain. So much so that people now worry more about what they cannot achieve at the expense of what they have. If all you see is how to do this or do that, you mind inadvertently dwells on what you cannot be.
Image courtesy gothic girl
I have seen people who have put themselves in the sad situation of “had I had this or that, I would be happier, more successful, more enterprising … but do we really need to be perfect to be successful or happy?
I know it is desirable to be able to overcome our shortcomings. It would just be great for us to be able to live lives free of the burden of imperfection.
But should our lives come to a standstill because we are unable to attain certain perceived “correct” standards?
It worries me that despite the very many “how to” resources out there humanity continues to grapple with the same concerns from all time.
People are still fat. People are still gambling; people are still oversexed, name it.
Trying to conquer imperfections has become a full time preoccupation for many. They put in so much time doing this that it even becomes a habit.
You see, whether you like it or not, you can never achieve it all.We are alive so that we can live above problems and not conquer them. The idea of heaven would not have been any attractive had it been possible for us to be all and attain all here.
If you are fat and you have dreams, please forget the pounds and march on. You spend too many productive hours fanning your complex that you end up doing nothing to add value to your life. Extra weight is not the worst thing that can happen to you. It is paying so much attention to it and leaving many other things undone that can be a disaster in the long run.
Same goes for smoking, sex, or whatever that flaw may be. If you fail at any turn as you fight it, straight away do something positive in response. Start an article. Call a prospective client. Read that report you never got round to, anything.
You will see your imperfection pale into insignificance because you can still have a life it notwithstanding.
Don’t cheat yourself out of living because of a personality defect.
Trust me, even the authors of the “HOW TOs” are themselves fighting one thing or another; very possibly what they are teaching you to conquer.
The more energy you invest into fighting an imperfection the more imperfect you become. It is the way it is. Your flaw reminds you that you are human. You stop being human the day you become perfect.
So please, get up and LIVE.
Remember fear always lurks behind perfectionism. Confronting your fears and allowing yourself the right to be human can, paradoxically, make you a far happier and more productive person.
-Dr. David M Burns
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