Being a perfectionist in business can be both beneficial and detrimental to entrepreneurship. While striving for perfection can lead to positive outcomes, overemphasizing perfectionism can lead to being overly cautious, avoiding risks, and ultimately hindering a business’s success. For startups, aiming to create the perfect business plan can be counterproductive and prevent the business from getting off the ground. Overcoming perfectionism in entrepreneurship is crucial to getting things done.
To avoid falling into the trap of perfection paralysis, entrepreneurs must learn to identify and avoid pitfalls and take actionable steps towards making progress. Here are some tips to help entrepreneurs strike a balance between striving for excellence and being adaptable:
Strive to be adaptable
Being fixated on perfection often leads to tunnel vision, making it difficult to accept change. Adaptability involves responding effectively to unexpected developments that may arise when starting a new business. For instance, when faced with a shipment of the wrong product, an adaptable entrepreneur can quickly resolve the issue by exchanging the product or integrating it into their store.
Learn to embrace failure
Avoiding failure can prevent entrepreneurs from ever starting their business. However, entrepreneurs who embrace failure can learn from their mistakes and turn them into opportunities for growth. Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos recognize that failure is an integral part of the process towards success.
Focus on goals and progress
Setting clear and concrete goals is critical in preventing entrepreneurs from becoming stuck in perfectionism. Identifying goals and tracking progress allows entrepreneurs to develop a plan for making progress and moving forward with their business.
Release analysis paralysis
Analysis paralysis involves being too preoccupied with analyzing the situation, while extinction by instinct is making decisions based on gut feeling alone. Striking a balance between these extremes involves assessing the situation and taking action when the opportunity presents itself.
Entrepreneurs must be mindful of the potential pitfalls of perfectionism when building their business plan. While striving for excellence is admirable, it can also prevent progress and hinder success. Overcoming perfectionism in entrepreneurship is a crucial step and often the first one. By taking a balanced approach, embracing adaptability, learning from failure, focusing on goals and progress, and finding a balance between analysis paralysis and extinction by instinct, entrepreneurs can avoid perfection paralysis and ensure their future success.
Need some assistance letting go of perfectionism and getting things done? Take our Business Survey and we’ll get in touch.