Perfection (noun): the state of being complete and correct in every way
As a writer, I like the challenge of picking words that best describe something. And the word I would use to name the thing I dislike the most at this stage of my life and career is "perfection."
Let me explain.
I started brainstorming on what my dream career would be like during the first days of April 2018. At the time, my job as an Executive Assistant wasn't giving me the fulfilment I was looking for. I knew something had to change. I mind-mapped my ideas and have been lucky enough to quickly figure out who I wanted to be, what I wanted to do, and why. Especially why. From there, I knew I had found my purpose.
It took about five months before I was able to completely assemble the puzzle of my dream career and finally see what the big picture looked like.
In doing so, I understood that the impact I was trying to have on the world would require a lot of work, consistency, and determination. I also had to accept the fact that my 9 to 5 was still going to be in sight for quite some time. Not as a dream killer as I had always viewed it as, but as a dream supporter, helping me fund the life I saw for myself. I mean, if I don't fund my dream, who will?
My plan was simple: I was going to work my way to the top and become a public figure using my voice and my writing to inspire people to go after their dream life (writing it down makes it even sexier). Of course, the journey wasn't going to be easy. It is a well-known fact that with every new level comes a new devil, and here is where perfection got in the way and almost defeated me.
The Perfect Moment Doesn't Exist, You Have To Create It.
The next steps I needed to take to make my project come to life were clear; get a logo for my brand, create both my website and YouTube Channel, and most importantly, create good content. The deadline to launch the whole concept was initially set for September 2018. Initially, yes. Almost immediately, I failed.
So, I set another deadline later that year, which I haven't been able to meet either. In fact, the closer launch day was, the less I felt ready to unveil myself to the world. Of course, it's no wonder fear was the reason I was delaying the birth of my imprint on the world.
Fear of not being good enough.
Fear of not having what it takes.
Fear of not matching my ambitions.
Fear of not being perfect for the job.
While I was trying so hard to find strength and courage within myself to do what I was supposed to, the book I'd finished writing a few months earlier has been published on Amazon. My childhood dream had become reality: I was now a published author!
However, no matter how big this achievement is to me, it, too, took months before I felt ready to publicly announce that I had written a book. One, because I didn't want to make an announcement without my brand being launched for marketing reasons. And two, as a French-speaking author who decided to write her first book in English, I feared it would be mediocre.
Perfection reared its ugly head yet again.
I decided I had enough. The need to achieve perfection had to go. Perfection was holding me back from living in my purpose. And it had been like that for too long. It was time for me to embrace my flaws and let the world know that Savannah Was Here. Finally, after having failed the first two times, I eventually managed to publish my brand's Facebook page, announce the publication of my first book, film my first video, and finally click the post button on YouTube. I must mention that besides my brand's story and its visual image, nothing was ready for publication. I'll be honest, perfection was fighting me. I had the hardest time letting go and I definitely had to count to three and hold my breath before I took the big jump. But at least, I jumped.
And guess what? Nobody even complained that what I created wasn't perfect. In fact, people have been asking why it took me so long to show off. I was even told that I make doing the things I love look magical. The process to creating and building my brand taught me an important thing: The perfect moment doesn't exist, you create it. If you wait for it, you're wasting your time. It's in your power to decide to make a moment perfect and to define what exactly makes it perfect. Also, I believe that one way to ensure that nothing happens is to want to achieve perfection; so don't be too hard on yourself.
Zig Ziglar once said, "You don't have to be great to start, but you have to start to be great."
Being A Work In Progress Still Makes You Relevant
All this time, I thought I needed to be a fully accomplished woman in order to inspire people. I used to wonder who is going to listen and take lessons from a 23-year-old who doesn't even have one third of Oprah's knowledge of life? Well, Oprah wasn't built in a day, they said. And here's even more good news: I doubt any of the most inspiring people on earth were.
No matter your age or your personal story, you owe yourself and the world to start somewhere and start using your gift in a meaningful way. Because the truth is, you never know who you are inspiring. When you walk in your purpose as a work in progress, it's magical to see because you become someone who's not better than anyone. You take the world by the hand and show it that it's possible. That we are all possible.
When you make the decision to truly walk in your purpose and use your gift, you eventually win people over to your cause and change the world, whether you want to become a dentist, an attorney, or a TV host. Give yourself the right to celebrate your small wins because they will be the stepping-stones to your purposeful life.
Give Perfection A New Meaning
Even if you don't eliminate perfection altogether, I'm finding there's a chance to make peace with perfection. Instead of letting society's standards define perfection for me, I'm redefining it by giving the word a meaning that reflects me and where I am at the moment:
Perfection (noun): the state of one's mind acknowledging how magical his or her flaws are, which procures a feeling of freedom of being
Featured image by Getty Images.
xoNecole is always looking for new voices and empowering stories to add to our platform. If you have an interesting story or personal essay that you'd love to share, we'd love to hear from you. Contact us at submissions@xonecole.com.
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Featured image by Greg Castel