Perfection vs Gradual Improvement
Plus I overthink when I'm tired
Sport drilled into me that “there’s no such thing as perfect, only the endless pursuit of perfection.”
Which is something I chased hard both while I was playing and in retirement.
But over the past year, I’ve worked with a coach who specialises in positive psychology (the field that helps people flourish, rather than fixing what’s wrong), and we’ve been focusing on self-acceptance.
Why self-acceptance? Well, because I realised I was chasing perfection for external validation, often at the expense of my own wellbeing, because I’d end up being crazy hard on myself if things weren’t perfect, and I’d fall into a heap.
Even if we won the game, one mistake would ruin it for me. And looking back, I don’t think that was healthy.
There’s nothing wrong with wanting to improve.
But improvement needs to be systematic and gradual, because pushing myself too hard for short bursts of productivity almost always ended in burnout.
My coach also helped me realise that I overthink when I’m tired. And I get tired when I don’t set clear boundaries with work, which leads me to take on too much, which then causes my mind to race.
And when it’s on overdrive, it spirals down stupid rabbit holes overthinking what happened, when all I really need is to do its hit “reset”, set work boundaries, and allow myself time to rest.
Curious to know if you overthink too when they’re tired? And if you believe being hard on yourself is the best way to improve, or have you found a better approach?
I'm reading all about positive psychology at the moment. I mostly like the concepts of it.
I find the more important something is to me, the more I worry/overthink it.