The Perfectionism Trap: Why "Done" Is Better Than "Perfect" for Leaders

linnearader
Dec 15, 2025
8 min read

Perfectionism is killing your productivity and stressing your team. Here's why "excellent and done" beats "perfect and never finished" every time.

Listen to the audio version here!

I once spent six hours perfecting a report that didn't get measurably better after the first decent draft.

Six. Hours.

On a report that three people would read, nobody would remember in a month, and had zero impact on anything important.

But it wasn't perfect yet. There were sentences I could tighten. Formatting I could improve. One more round of edits would make it really shine.

Except it wouldn't. I was just spinning my wheels, convincing myself that perfection was achievable if I just worked a little harder.

I was wrong. And that perfectionism was costing me everything.

The Hidden Cost of Perfectionism in Leadership

Leader struggling with perfectionism and endless revisions

Perfectionism means you'll never be happy with what you're working on and you'll get further and further behind. You don't have time to be perfect, and it's a standard you can't sustain anyway.

I've spent countless hours perfecting projects that didn't actually get better after the first solid draft. At some point, you're just spinning your wheels. Excellence is achievable. Perfection is a myth that keeps you stuck.

Oh my goodness have I over-perfected projects? OH YES. I struggle with trying to make everything perfect and the result is not finishing anything.

My latest over-perfected fail is an update to the performance appraisal process. I spent more hours than I care to admit trying to get it how I want it. And in the end, I ended up doing a refresh of last year combined with the year before's system.

I have tons of notes and ideas to upgrade for next year, but I'm going to have to start in January if I'm going to overthink it again next year.

Here's what perfectionism actually costs you:

You'll never be satisfied with your work. There's always one more thing to fix, one more improvement to make, one more draft to review. The finish line keeps moving.

You get further and further behind. While you're perfecting last week's project, this week's work is piling up. You're always playing catch-up because nothing is ever quite done.

Your team learns to be perfectionists too. When you model impossible standards, your team thinks that's what's expected. They start spinning their wheels too.

You miss opportunities. While you're perfecting something that's already good enough, opportunities that require quick action pass you by.

Why Leaders Fall Into the Perfectionism Trap

"Many leaders built their careers on being the person who gets it right, who delivers quality work, who never drops the ball."

I've always struggled with the idea that perfectionism is a good thing. I got my one and only EVER detention in school because of it.

I had a language arts project that involved writing a book report in an illustrated version. I was all about the Secret Garden and I wanted it perfect. The report had to be perfect, the pictures, everything. I worked on it for HOURS and HOURS. On the last night before it was due, I had my first band concert and had my first ever period. Holy hot mess. I didn't finish the report in all of that mess and got a detention.

So it's always been there with me. It's part of who I am. I have to fight the perfectionism trap a lot.

Many leaders built their careers on being the person who gets it right, who delivers quality work, who never drops the ball. That identity becomes deeply ingrained. When you delegate or release work, you're essentially saying, "This is good enough." For perfectionists, "good enough" feels like failure.

Here's something I've learned: leaders under a lot of stress struggle even more with perfectionism. When people are looking to you to be perfect, or worse, when you feel that internal pressure yourself, you won't want to take the chance that what you produce isn't flawless. The stakes feel too high. Your reputation feels too fragile.

Yes, stress makes perfectionism worse. If I'm worried about scrutiny, I have to completely fight the urge to work the task to pieces and rip it apart.

The Difference Between Excellence and Perfectionism

Excellence vs perfectionism comparison for leaders

Here's what most people get wrong: perfectionism isn't the same thing as having high standards.

Excellence means doing work that meets a high standard, accomplishes the goal, and can actually be completed. Excellence serves the work and the mission.

Perfectionism means chasing an impossible standard that's never quite met, never quite finished, never quite right. Perfectionism serves your ego and your fear.

Excellence asks: "Is this good enough to achieve our goal?"

Perfectionism asks: "Could this possibly be better in any way?"

One of those questions has an answer. The other doesn't.

Excellence versus perfectionism is a really tough line to manage. The difference between the two comes in when the nitpicking starts. When I've completed the project, but I go back over it to pick apart different pieces to make them better when they're already amazing. At that point it usually kills the project.

How to Know When You've Crossed the Line

"You're perfecting things that are already good enough."

Here's the test I use now: Am I making this measurably better, or am I just making it different?

After that first solid draft, after you've addressed the major issues and refined the important parts, most additional work is just rearranging deck chairs. You're tweaking word choices that don't matter. You're adjusting formatting that nobody will notice. You're perfecting things that are already good enough.

The 80/20 rule applies here: 80% of the value comes from 20% of the time. That first draft might take you two hours and get you to "pretty good." The next four hours might get you from "pretty good" to "great." The six hours after that? You're fighting for marginal improvements that nobody will notice.

At some point I've had to realize that when the project is done, I can go back over it one time and that's it. The problem is recognizing when that point actually is.

Breaking the Perfectionism Habit

Recovering perfectionist practicing done is better than perfect

Here's what actually works for recovering perfectionists:

Strategy 1: Set a "Good Enough" Standard Before You Start

"If, after that point, they weren't good enough, I was barking up the wrong tree."

Before you begin a project, define what "done" looks like. Write down the specific criteria. What does this need to accomplish? What quality level is appropriate for this situation?

A routine email to your team doesn't need the same polish as a board presentation. A first draft of a policy doesn't need to be perfect because you'll get feedback and revise it anyway.

The submission of my portfolio for my Master's Degree is a perfect example. There's a template, there's detailed instructions. I needed to write summaries of my work experience and how they relate to specific classes that I could trade off for credits.

I've been wanting to submit this thing for the last 6 years. I had a ton of excuses why I hadn't, so this last year it became a goal. Initially I drafted it and filled out the applications and all the "easy" paperwork, then I set it aside to review later.

Six months goes by and I haven't submitted it. As I'm closing in on the end of the year, I realize I'm going to miss my goal, so I start going after it again. I drafted, redrafted, started over, and hacked the summaries of my work experiences to pieces. They were done and good enough long ago, but I was so worried it made it take months to finish.

So when was it really done? What should I actually have done? I should have written them, set them aside for a few days, proofread, updated and submitted them. If, after that point, they weren't good enough, I was barking up the wrong tree.

Strategy 2: Use Time Limits

This gets two hours. This gets two days. When the time is up, it's done.

Time limits force you to focus on what actually matters instead of endlessly polishing. You make better decisions about where to invest your energy.

Strategy 3: Ask What the Actual Consequence Is

"I really could be much more accomplished if I'd stop trying to perfect everything."

What happens if this isn't perfect? Really, what's the worst case?

Most of the time, the consequence of "good enough" versus "perfect" is... nothing. Nobody notices. Nothing bad happens. The work accomplishes its goal just fine.

If I would have just pulled the trigger and gotten my portfolio done at the beginning of the year, I could have actually taken my final capstone class and finished my degree this year. But I didn't.

With all of those other projects I perfected to death? I could have actually completed far more projects, made progress on other great ideas. I really could be much more accomplished if I'd stop trying to perfect everything.

Strategy 4: Practice Shipping Imperfect Work

Start small. Send an email without reading it seventeen times. Submit a draft that's good but not perfect. Turn in work that meets the standard even though you can see ways it could be better.

Notice what happens. Usually nothing. And in that nothing, you start to realize that perfect was never required.

I've gotten much better at fighting perfectionism this last year. These blog posts for instance. I've decided that I will put my thoughts on paper. I'll review them, edit them and save them. Then, when I go to record them for YouTube, if I find something that I want to revise, I'll do it, but that's it. That's how I am able to maintain my authenticity and not overdo each one of these things.

When Perfectionism Is Actually Procrastination

"If I haven't found the perfect way to start, I procrastinate."

Here's an uncomfortable truth: sometimes perfectionism is just fear wearing a disguise.

"I can't share this until it's perfect" often means "I'm afraid of judgment."

"Just one more round of edits" often means "I'm avoiding the next scary task."

Perfectionism feels productive. It feels like you're working hard and caring about quality. But sometimes it's just a socially acceptable way to avoid taking risks or facing criticism.

I use my perfectionism as a disguise for procrastination all the time. I'm always trying to find the best outline, the best plan, the best way to accomplish something. If I haven't found the perfect way to start, I procrastinate. I'm afraid if I don't have a good framework, I'll spin my wheels, make a mess of the project and won't deliver something I'm proud of.

What "Excellent and Done" Actually Looks Like

Since I've started practicing "excellent and done" instead of chasing perfect, everything has changed.

I get more done. My team moves faster because they're not waiting for me to finish perfecting things. I have time to focus on work that actually matters instead of endlessly polishing work that's already good.

And here's the surprising part: the quality of my work hasn't suffered. Because most of what I was doing in those extra hours wasn't making it better anyway.

The time I've freed up by letting go of perfectionism? I've been able to write these blog posts, launch my coaching business, and actually make progress on goals that matter instead of endlessly polishing work that was already good enough.

Your Perfectionism Challenge

Breaking the perfectionism habit in leadership

This week, practice "excellent and done" on one thing. Just one.

Pick something relatively low-stakes. Get it to good. Then stop. Ship it. Move on.

Notice what happens. Notice how it feels to let go. Notice whether anyone else even recognizes that it's not "perfect."

Start building the muscle of completion instead of perfection.

Because your job as a leader isn't to produce perfect work. It's to make good decisions, move projects forward, and help your team succeed. And every hour you spend chasing perfection is an hour you're not doing any of those things.

Excellence is achievable. Perfection is a myth that keeps you stuck.

This is one of 10 leadership habits you should break in 2025. Read about the other 9 bad leadership habits here.

Struggling with perfectionism as a leader? I help managers break habits that hold them back and build sustainable leadership practices. Schedule a free consultation.

Are you a recovering perfectionist? What's helped you let go? Share in the comments below.

As always, carry social kindness with you everywhere you go. The world needs you and your positive mindset!