Thomas Curran

And if I put all of myself into this first effort and still didn't make it, well, I'm not going to do that again because the feelings of shame and embarrassment were so intense that I just don't want to feel those things again.

And so this is the perfectionism paradox, I suppose.

This is that they really are so intensely fearful of that failure that when it looks like it's going to be a very likely outcome of anything that we're doing, then they take themselves away from those situations.

That's incredibly self-sabotaging.

It doesn't just look like complete withdrawal, by the way.

It can also come in the form of procrastination.

So we'll remove ourselves from doing activities that are really difficult in the moment because the anxiety is so intense.

All of those things are not at all conducive to performance.

There's no way you would want someone like me flying your plane.

Because if an engine suddenly craps out at 35,000 feet, you're going to need somebody who's able to think very clearly about the procedures.

There's going to be, by the way, no perfect way to get out of that situation

There's gonna be many, many good enough ways to get out of that situation.

And what a perfectionist will do, will search for the perfect outcome.

Whereas somebody who is more conscientious, meticulous or diligent, they'll be able to know that there are many different options that we can take.

And the most important thing is to take the option that lands the plane safely.

And that's the same with a surgeon, that's the same with working in a nuclear plant, any of these kind of very high risk activities

conscientiousness, diligence, really important qualities, but not perfection.

Yeah, absolutely.

I saw that point, actually.

I remember it well.