Don't Let Good Be the Enemy of Exists

GIF by Laurène Boglio

I’m a perfectionist. So much so that saying “I’m a perfectionist” makes me cringe, as it suggests that the things I’ve completed in my life were somehow perfect, or at least that I deemed them to be perfect.

Nothing could be further from the truth. When I decide something is done, I’ve merely concluded that it has all its necessary components and is in a condition that I can, in good conscience, walk away from. More often than not, the “I’m done” moment comes when I feel like I’ve spent enough time on a thing and need to move on. I’ve certainly never concluded something was done because it was perfect or even approaching perfect.

That’s why the phrase “don’t let perfect be the enemy of good” always bothered me. Ostensibly, that phrase is aimed at perfectionists and means something like, “If you insist on perfect, you’ll never finish anything, so settle for good.”

But, to a perfectionist, “good” is an impossibly high standard, too. The Beatles were good. Vermeer was good. Salinger was good. Striving for good is no less daunting than striving for perfect. The perfectionist’s mind will almost never allow him to think his work rises to the standard of “good” set by those who came before.

So, even though I hate clichés, I humbly propose a new one: “Don’t let good be the enemy of exists.”

My fellow perfectionists, don’t judge your work against the good stuff. That’s a losing battle. If you compare your writing to the bestsellers, or your home recordings to the hits, you’ll never be satisfied. Your brain simply will not allow you to think your work measures up.

So don’t strive for “good.” Strive for “exists.” Just get the thing done. Start typing. Press record. Say “whatever, it’s fine” and keep going. Your talent and ability have your back — they ensure a baseline of quality that is better than you think.

Most importantly, your thing will exist. It won’t be some idea knocking around in your head for years, perfect in theory, sheltered from the indignities of reality. It won’t be reminding you how unproductive you are, how much you procrastinate. It will be out there, asserting itself in the world, headlong against the winds of resistance.

And get this: some people will even think it’s good. Those fools.