Today’s society is driven by high expectations and the pursuit of perfection. In other words, we’re all competing in a rat race. Perfection may have different meanings for each individual, but usually, it encompasses appearance, achievements, relationships, personal attributes, and career. Instead of celebrating their life and everything they’ve achieved, individuals are now focused on achieving perfection in every aspect.
This blog outlines the concept of overcoming perfectionism by embracing our flaws. With valuable insights from the book “Becoming Flawesome: The Key to Living an Imperfectly Authentic Life,” by Kristina Mand-Lakhiani you’ll get a headstart into adopting a positive mindset and reaffirming belief in your strength, capabilities, and power.
Embracing Imperfections: Why is it Necessary?
While many believe achieving perfection paves the path to success, the constant need to meet impossibly high standards can be exhausting and emotionally draining. A continuous struggle to attain perfection primarily becomes counterintuitive and puts a person’s well-being at risk, affecting other aspects of their life.
Society often portrays perfection as an ideal to be pursued relentlessly. If you already have a 4-figure stable job, why isn’t it 6-figures? A happy family of 3? You need another kid! Gain a little weight and prepare yourself to get unwanted tips from everyone on losing those extra pounds.
The truth is you can’t always make everybody happy. While you can give in to the idea of running after perfectionism, true transformation begins when we challenge this notion and recognize the beauty in embracing our flaws.
Where imperfections are seen as weaknesses, they’re unique attributes that make each one of us who we are. Understanding this allows us to release the burden of perfectionism. Not just that, but it helps embrace our individual identity as well as a more authentic, genuine, and fulfilling way of living.
Learning the Secret to Embracing Flaws From the Expert
Overcoming the need to attain perfection isn’t a day’s work. In fact, people spend thousands of bucks on therapy once they realize that they’re falling deeper into the pits of an unhealthy habit. Unfortunately, most people are unknowingly already at that phase where attaining perfectionism becomes their life goal.
Instead of signing up for something that you’ll only leave halfway through to actively resolve these destructive habits, Kristina Mand has gathered a gold mine of insights and guides into the journey of self-acceptance and transformation, all combined in her book: Becoming Flawesome. This book gives you a deeper insight into shifting your perspective. As a result, you’ll be opening doorways to your personal growth, self-discovery, and mindset transformation.
How Does Embracing Flaws Guarantee Transformation?
Transformation is lifelong learning in itself, and it doesn’t come easy. However, taking steps in the right direction becomes easier with guidance. The journey of #BecomingFlawesome includes accepting ourselves just as we are, flaws and all. But how does embracing those imperfections cater to a major change in your mindset and life? Here’s an overview:
The Power of Self-Compassion
Perfection exists, but more often than not, it stems from deeper insecurities, such as the deep fear of failure or a desire for external validation. While it’s not entirely the individual’s fault considering these external factors, it’s important to recognize the problem and cultivate self-compassion as a response. As a first step, you need to break free from the vicious cycle of perfectionism as means of true liberation, which is only possible when each of us is more kind, understanding, and forgiving to ourselves.
Unleashing Creativity through Imperfection
Most creative and innovative people known in history didn’t give in to the shackles of perfectionism. Instead, they were open to making mistakes and falling short of ideals. Perfectionism stifles creativity, and only when we embrace our flaws can we unlock our creative potential, allowing us to explore new ideas, take risks, and discover our unique voices.
Working on Authentic Connections
Trying to work towards perfectionism is an isolating journey. To maintain an image of flawlessness, we hide from real-life connections so as to not show our imperfections. By embracing our flaws, we foster authentic connections with those around us. These relationships not only create an environment of trust and openness but also strengthen resilience, enriches relationships, and provide a supportive network.
Conclusion
Overcoming perfectionism isn’t just letting go of unrealistic ideals but embracing our imperfections and recognizing our individual transformative power uncapped through our attributes. By shifting our mindsets towards self-acceptance, we can gradually free ourselves of unrealistic expectations, and that eventually leads to walking the path of true transformation.
