You’re Not a Perfectionist. You’re Just Scared of Being Seen Starting.

You don’t need to fix your perfectionism.
You need to aim it.

There’s More Than One Kind of Perfectionist

Psychologists Dr. Paul Hewitt and Dr. Gordon Flett outline three main types:

• Self-Oriented: You set high standards for yourself. Internally driven. Often motivating.

• Socially-Prescribed: You believe others expect you to be perfect. This is where shame thrives.

• Other-Oriented: You impose unrealistic standards on others. (Tough love: if people call you impossible to please, this might be you.)

It’s socially-prescribed perfectionism that tends to break us.
But self-oriented perfectionism? That’s the kind that builds Olympic athletes and bestselling authors. That’s the kind that moves the world forward.

It’s the part of you that dreams in detail and delivers under pressure.

And it’s probably why you’ve got 11 versions of the same doc saved as:

If you’ve ever done the same... congrats. You’re not broken. You just give a damn.

The Power of Perfectionism (If You Learn to Direct It)

Leonardo da Vinci took four years to finish the Mona Lisa. One brushstroke at a time. Weeks between tweaks.

Tesla worked in total solitude, obsessed with getting every detail right.

Were they intense? Absolutely. But without that intensity, we don’t get legacy-level work.

Perfectionism is power. But like all power—love, intelligence, beauty—it cuts both ways.

How to Know If It’s Helping or Hurting You:

Ask yourself:

• Am I building, or hiding behind endless edits?

• Am I striving from love, or fear?

• Do I want progress—or just praise?

Because unconscious perfectionism is the problem.
Directed perfectionism? That’s your superpower.

📊 READER POLL:

What’s perfectionism done for you?

🔘 Helped me level up professionally
🔘 Burned me out
🔘 Made me great at details
🔘 Trapped me in overthinking
🔘 Something else — lmk 👇

Final Thought:

You’ve probably been told to fix yourself.

"Relax."
"Chill."
"Stop being so intense."

But what if your perfectionism isn’t a flaw?
What if it’s a sign of how deeply you care?

Yes, it can spiral.
But the answer isn’t to shut it down—it’s to lead it.

Don’t numb it. Don’t shame it.
Aim it.

Because you’re not too much.
You’re just in the process of figuring out how to carry that fire without burning out.

So no, perfectionism isn’t the problem.

Unused power is.

—

PS: I’m building something just for you — the ones who overthink, care deeply, and want to build with precision.
Stay tuned 👀