Day 20 | Done is Better than Perfect

Years ago, I filmed my first instructional yoga videos.  I hired a professional crew, they brought in the fancy lighting, we had hair and make-up, I had my wardrobe all set.  I had a vision and I was ready.  I paid $1500 and we shot three short videos intended as practice videos for my students.  As the rough cut came back, I was so excited.  It was happening.  The ball was moving forward.  

I took the rough cut over to a friend’s house and showed it to her.  She was also a yoga teacher and had a film background.  I figured she would be the perfect person to share my special project with.  She looked at the footage and her response was something akin to disgust.  Why did the DP shoot that angle on you?  Her voice pitched high.  There is so much ass in these shots. I’m sorry, but what was he thinking? Oh, Alex, it’s just so much ass.  This went on for awhile.  I offered a meek, ‘well, we only had two camera angles.’  I was devastated.  

After that conversation, it took me a year and a half to summon the courage to post those three videos.  Sure, it took some time to do the voice over and other pieces of post production.  But, mainly I spent time obsessing — trying to figure out how to crop shots and edit the video to minimize my offending ass.  And I spent time procrastinating.  While there is a lot to unpack here, one of the biggest lessons I realize in remembering this story is how caught up in perfectionism I was with this project.  Which is to say, I was very attached to what other people think.

The element of perfectionism is an important toxin to release on our Yoga Body Cleanse.  It shows up in different forms for different people.  It can manifest as personal standards, self-criticism, work ideals, and social conditioning standards. Perfectionism will try to annihilate you for not doing things – perhaps even this cleanse – ‘perfectly.’  It can cripple us with concern about what other people think. It will keep you stagnant and it wants you to not be seen.

In her groundbreaking Ted Talk, The Power of Vulnerability, Brené Brown speaks to the importance of vulnerability as it relates to shame. She connects perfectionism as being a component piece to how these things relate.  She often will say that ‘when perfectionism is driving, you have shame riding shotgun with fear in the backseat.’  And that fear can create an immobilizing grip on us that leads to procrastination.  Brown says:

 

“Perfectionism is a 20-ton shield.  It’s a way of thinking that says: If I look perfect, live perfect, and work perfect, then I can avoid or minimize criticism and blame.”

 

Addressing this 'transactional' belief system, we turn to spiritual teachings.  As we find ourselves in a trance of perfectionism, we bring in awareness that this is happening.  We release the grasping to what we are trying to perfect.  As soon as we begin to release this grip (aparigraha), there is space for us to shift.  Beneath the botox, the perfectly curated post, and the job well done, we go deeper into a remembrance that we are enough in this very moment.  

Does this mean we pack up our toys, stop creating, do sub-par work, and go home?  Far from it. (And it doesn’t have to mean we stop getting Botox either). This is the turning point to excellence.  Your version of excellence.  The version that knows you are whole and that being brave is putting yourself out there, in the arena, sharing your gifts with the world.  Your version is not energetically air brushed.  It’s real and it’s vulnerable.  For me, it’s a version that wears short shorts at 52 because I simply don’t give a fu%k anymore what other people think about my ass.

As former COO of Facebook, Sheryl Sandberg said, ‘Done is better than perfect.’   So with a brave heart we move forward our path as we clear the toxin of perfectionism.

JOURNAL

  • Identify an area that is activating perfectionism.  Is it preventing you from finishing or doing something?  In what way can you reframe this so that you strive for your own version excellence rather than perfectionism?  What would that look like?

  • Write (and please share with me) all the positive changes and transformations you've experienced during the three weeks of the program. 

  • If you didn’t do as much as you intended during these three weeks, what is a way to that you can come to acceptance and release any ‘should-y’ feeling?  What knowlege did you gain that will help you move forward?

ACTION

  • Do 80% - When it comes to habits that you always go at with full force, try doing less. This can not only be more effective in many cases, it can also increase productivity and give us access to more creativity. 

  • Done is better than perfect.  What is something that you’ve been sitting on that you are willing to put out there now?

  • Optional: Follow up and share with me after you do the thing you’ve been stagnated on due to perfectionism.

RECIPE

Calming Ashwaganda Drink

For a soothing wind-down experience at the end of a busy day, Sip on this deliciousness. Ashwaganda is an adaptogenic that works as a cortisol blocker in the body.

Benefits of Ashwaganda

  • Relieves Stress and Anxiety

  • Lowers Blood Sugar and Fat

  • Increases Muscle and Strength

  • Improves Sexual Function in Women

  • Boosts Fertility and Testosterone Levels in Men

  • Sharpens Focus and Memory

  • Supports Heart Health

On Demand - Day 20

I love you, Keep going!

Alex

Next Up - so important, our last yoga class and chat for now!

Sunday 10:30 AM