10 realest thoughts only a perfectionist can feel and relate to: Are you one?


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Last Updated on 2016-05-19 , 1:53 pm

Whether youโ€™re sure youโ€™re a perfectionist, or just wondering if youโ€™re one, read on to find out how many of these you find relatable.

Being average is a horrible thought.
As a perfectionist, being โ€˜averageโ€™ is bad. It feels worse than failing. Youโ€™d want to be more than just average, otherwise all the hard work is worthless, and things donโ€™t count.


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You find group work a hassle.
Youโ€™d rather have more to do alone in a group work, than share the workload with the rest โ€“ because at least you know that things will be done right. Even if the workload was to be divided, youโ€™d still go through everything at the end of the day just to make sure things are flawless.

You spend A LOT of time doing something.
Youโ€™d go through every corner of the house, or at least your room, a couple of times before you leave the house โ€“ just in case you forget something. And when you realise you forgot something, it pisses you off like crazy.

Youโ€™d read that e-mail at least ten times before you send it out. Youโ€™d erase and rewrite your notes till you get your handwriting right. Youโ€™d spend a good fifteen minutes picking out those last bits of ginger (which I really canโ€™t stand) in your food.

Failing is something difficult to accept.
So you went through the whole house, yet you still forgot to bring your earpiece out? Now youโ€™re already on the bus, and youโ€™re just mad AF: โ€œdamn it!โ€

You take comments very seriously.
Whether it is a criticism or a compliment, youโ€™d take it very seriously. If itโ€™s a criticism, youโ€™d make sure things get done better so thereโ€™s nothing for them to pinpoint the next time. If itโ€™s a compliment, well, thereโ€™s always room for improvement right?

Disappointing others is a big no-no.
Youโ€™d rather make your own life difficult, than disappoint someone who believed in you. Especially when you receive a compliment, itโ€™s like theyโ€™ve just invested all of their faith in you to be perfect โ€“ and youโ€™d rather die than fail to meet that โ€˜expectationโ€™ you have come up with for yourself.

You stay away from a schedule.
Other people who just donโ€™t understand might think that you plan a lot ahead of time. The truth is, you donโ€™t keep yourself to a schedule, or at least not very often, because youโ€™re afraid of being unable to keep up with it โ€“ and that inability is a form of failure youโ€™ll then have to face. You donโ€™t want that kind of burden in your life, so you try not to routinise your life.

A minor mistake is a serious flaw.
No mistake is too small. If you spent a long time typing and proofreading an e-mail, and only realise that extra spacing after youโ€™d sent it, youโ€™d have a hard time sleeping that night. And because of that, itโ€™s really hard to bounce back from failure. It can take days, years, and sometimes, forever.


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Youโ€™re a sucker for details.
When youโ€™re trying to sound polished, youโ€™d go through the list of synonyms in Thesaurus.com for that perfect word to describe how youโ€™re feeling in an e-mail, or a script to be used in a presentation, or even in a conversation. Youโ€™d plan them in your head just to look prepared.

Youโ€™d also secretly cringe at the mistakes people make in their work. Those speelling errrors, those InAPproPriate CaSeS Of AlPhaBets, that โ€˜extra  spacingโ€™, that missing comma etc. โ€“ but hey, you just canโ€™t seem to help it as a perfectionist, can you?

You procrastinate a lot more than others think you would.
Procrastination is your thing, and thatโ€™s probably ironic. You donโ€™t want to get started because you know youโ€™re in for a shit load of work to do. And once you get started, you donโ€™t know when things will end โ€“ thatโ€™s if thereโ€™s even an ending in the first place.

To my fellow perfectionists (or those wondering if youโ€™re one), even if you can relate to all of the above, donโ€™t ever feel down about yourself. Instead, be proud of who you are. Personally, Iโ€™m guilty of all of these, and Iโ€™m okay with it because I know this is how I am.

Although we might be labelled as โ€˜extremeโ€™ or even โ€˜desperateโ€™, just remember: you are who you are, and itโ€™s okay no matter what others may think of you. Be a sucker for details, be a procrastinator if you wish to but know that at least you get things done by the end of the day.


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Just donโ€™t give yourself too much pressure, and when itโ€™s time to relax, give yourself that space to find some peace before you get back to work. As long as youโ€™ve given your best, who are they to tell you how to live your life?

Cheers!

Top Image: AVAVA / Shutterstock.com