As the New Year
gets underway, everyone is trying to improve themselves into perfection. I am
all for improvement, but it seems like my imperfections have given me my
greatest successes. Is perfection all that it’s cracked up to be?
I am a
perfectionist. I like everything and
everyone to be punctual, to run smoothly, and to be presentable. The older I
get, the more I realize this isn’t how life works. Accidents happen and people
run late. It’s how you deal with setbacks that make all the difference. Last
year, quite a few things didn’t go as planned. I lost clients from my business
for various reasons. I even had a relationship that only lasted a month and a
half. I remember being disappointed by both. I began to wonder if I was good at
PR. I started to think maybe rushing into a relationship was born out of me
wanting to share my successes with. My life was far from perfect. Despite these
things, I forged ahead, praying the sun was shining over the horizon.
Out of those two “failures”,
two of the most amazing things happened. Despite the loss of some of my
clients, I landed a client, who after winning both the primary and general
elections, is now a state representative.
The fleeting romantic relationship taught me to take my time. I also
learned that quitting while you’re ahead isn’t the same as quitting. He was
overly combative and felt that a romantic partnership was really a
dictatorship, where he was the leader. Even though the relationship was brief,
I had nothing to feel bad about. I recognized the iceberg about to hit the boat
and I saved myself. I like my mistakes to be short lived.
Though life may not be perfect and full of “failures”, our
successes usually come from these experiences. As imperfect creatures,
expecting perfection 100% of the time is a futile cause. Strive for perfection,
but remember that maybe failure is meant to teach a lesson that will lead to
success.
