Nasrullah MohammedPortfolio Manager| Advanced Electronics CompanyRiyadh, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Although there are many benefits of aiming to be the best at what you do, it can sometimes be a barrier to getting things done in the first place. Is the "Being first" approach better than the "Being best" one? Saving Changes...
Eric SimmsSenior Program ManagerBaltimore, Maryland, United States
Good post. I know from personal experience that perfectionism is a character trait that needs to be carefully monitored and controlled - it can help a person strive to achieve their best, but it can also stop them from being as effective as possible. Perfectionists generally hate making mistakes, so we can invest too much time and energy in an action we should have abandoned long ago. Ideally a person should be able to ‘fail forward fast’, which means they shouldn’t be afraid to make mistakes, for the sooner they make a mistake the sooner they can correct it and find the right answer.
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1 reply by Nasrullah Mohammed
Apr 02, 2017 2:32 PM
Nasrullah Mohammed
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Appreciate the compliment Eric.
Perfectionists tend to be critical of others. It’s a defense mechanism that causes us to reject in others what we can’t accept in ourselves, and the more we pick at our shortcomings, the more we fixate on those of the people around us. These strong feelings come from idealizing the perfect person and life, and it’s a menacing filter we can’t seem to lift off of reality.
Saving Changes...
Drew CraigSr. Agile & Product Coach| VanguardPhiladelphia, Pa, United States
Perfectionism is a personality trait.
There is not necessarily any value in being first - especially at the expense of mistakes. The value is doing the best work possible in a given situation.
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2 replies by Nasrullah Mohammed and Rami Kaibni
Apr 02, 2017 1:21 PM
Rami Kaibni
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Andrew, you nailed that.
As they say, everyone is perfect in their own imperfect way.
Apr 02, 2017 2:20 PM
Nasrullah Mohammed
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Agree with you Andrew. Perfectionism is a stable personality trait and, as such, it is difficult to change. Socially prescribed perfectionism is driven by the fear that others will ridicule you if you are not perfect. It is also often combined with demands of perfection from family, friends and colleagues, and accompanied by feelings of distress and depression.They also tend not to have strong social support networks because, not only were they critical of others, they also reported feeling like "failures" if they ever needed to ask others for help.
If your striving is internally motivated and you can bounce back from disappointment, a certain level of perfectionism might be healthy.
Agree with Eric and Andrew. In my experience being done is better than being perfect. Careful line to walk though, as attention to detail is a very important trait for a PM. So balancing being "done" against having good quality and ensuring the detail is paid attention to is important.
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1 reply by Nasrullah Mohammed
Apr 02, 2017 2:36 PM
Nasrullah Mohammed
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Thanks Liana for your input. We must take pride in finishing things, getting them out there and learning from the process and feedback so we can get better the next time. We must make a deadline and finish the job. We must keep our standards high but be realistic
Saving Changes...
Sergio Luis ConteHelping to create solutions for everyone| Worldwide based OrganizationsBuenos Aires, Argentina
With all my due respect there are great mistakes in your comment Nasrullah. Words like "best" have a lot of ambiguity because are subjective matter that you must transform into objective ones. The same with "first". And first of all, in the case of disciplines like project management, it must be analyzed inside a context.
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1 reply by Nasrullah Mohammed
Apr 02, 2017 2:56 PM
Nasrullah Mohammed
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Thanks Sergio. I really appreciate you taking the time to answer and share your thoughts. Your suggestion is incredibly convincing. I'm always looking for ways to improve my performance and benefit from experts across the globe.
Senior Projects Manager | Field & Marten AssociatesNew Westminster, British Columbia, Canada
Apr 02, 2017 8:43 AM
Replying to Drew Craig
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Perfectionism is a personality trait.
There is not necessarily any value in being first - especially at the expense of mistakes. The value is doing the best work possible in a given situation.
Andrew, you nailed that.
As they say, everyone is perfect in their own imperfect way.
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1 reply by Nasrullah Mohammed
Apr 02, 2017 3:12 PM
Nasrullah Mohammed
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True Rami. There is a kind of beauty in every imperfection. We are perfect in our own imperfections. Secure in our securities. Happy in our pain. Strong in our weaknesses. And most of all, happy in our own way. I am who I am.
It is easier to be happy if you look beyond imperfections than trying too hard to be perfect.
Every simple imperfection adds to your beauty. It will always be the imperfect people that will make you perfectly happy!
Thing need to get done in a timely matter, and need to be done at your best. If something need to be done, it need to be well done. It is not a question who do it first. Saving Changes...
I am not sure I am correctly understanding your intention of this question. IMHO, In the dynamic world where uncertainty of future is dominating, perfectionism might not the good idea to pursue. As Eric commented people should not be afraid of making misstates and should find the effective or efficient way to correct them without losing initial enthusiasm and motivation. However if the perfectionism is the notion for achievement through repeated trials and errors regardless of time and effort consuming without satisfaction of current small success, yes, every innovative thing might result from that process in the long run. Saving Changes...
Nasrullah MohammedPortfolio Manager| Advanced Electronics CompanyRiyadh, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Apr 02, 2017 8:43 AM
Replying to Drew Craig
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Perfectionism is a personality trait.
There is not necessarily any value in being first - especially at the expense of mistakes. The value is doing the best work possible in a given situation.
Agree with you Andrew. Perfectionism is a stable personality trait and, as such, it is difficult to change. Socially prescribed perfectionism is driven by the fear that others will ridicule you if you are not perfect. It is also often combined with demands of perfection from family, friends and colleagues, and accompanied by feelings of distress and depression.They also tend not to have strong social support networks because, not only were they critical of others, they also reported feeling like "failures" if they ever needed to ask others for help.
If your striving is internally motivated and you can bounce back from disappointment, a certain level of perfectionism might be healthy. Saving Changes...
Nasrullah MohammedPortfolio Manager| Advanced Electronics CompanyRiyadh, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Apr 02, 2017 7:55 AM
Replying to Eric Simms
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Good post. I know from personal experience that perfectionism is a character trait that needs to be carefully monitored and controlled - it can help a person strive to achieve their best, but it can also stop them from being as effective as possible. Perfectionists generally hate making mistakes, so we can invest too much time and energy in an action we should have abandoned long ago. Ideally a person should be able to ‘fail forward fast’, which means they shouldn’t be afraid to make mistakes, for the sooner they make a mistake the sooner they can correct it and find the right answer.
Appreciate the compliment Eric.
Perfectionists tend to be critical of others. It’s a defense mechanism that causes us to reject in others what we can’t accept in ourselves, and the more we pick at our shortcomings, the more we fixate on those of the people around us. These strong feelings come from idealizing the perfect person and life, and it’s a menacing filter we can’t seem to lift off of reality. Saving Changes...
Nasrullah MohammedPortfolio Manager| Advanced Electronics CompanyRiyadh, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Apr 02, 2017 9:33 AM
Replying to Liana Underwood
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Agree with Eric and Andrew. In my experience being done is better than being perfect. Careful line to walk though, as attention to detail is a very important trait for a PM. So balancing being "done" against having good quality and ensuring the detail is paid attention to is important.
Thanks Liana for your input. We must take pride in finishing things, getting them out there and learning from the process and feedback so we can get better the next time. We must make a deadline and finish the job. We must keep our standards high but be realistic Saving Changes...
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