One of my intentions for this newsletter is to offer ways of being and engaging with complexity and the unknown.
I'll be transparent: I have been delaying sending my newsletter out for weeks now in an effort to perfect my message. And by doing so, I left any potential joy in sharing this new role at the door in an effort to “clarify” my wording. I feared that people would unsubscribe right away, that this post about perfectionism was too vague and uninteresting which sounds trivial in the grand scheme of things and illustrates how pervasive perfectionism is. Oh, the irony! The tension! But also material to work with!
How often do we delay important action in an effort to "get it just right"? How often do we put things on the back burner because we want to perfect them or have them make more sense? Or wait until the time is right?
Where does this show up when it comes to leadership in taking action on climate? On the individual level? The collective? Resistance can show up in many forms. Is perfectionism one of them?
When it comes to climate change, we as a society have the science and technology we need to take action and the solutions at our fingertips. And yet there is still such a gap between where we are and where we need to go.
While I’m not condoning mindless action or looking to simplify complex and largely systemic and political issues, I am curious how perfectionism shows up in our lives and whether it prevents us from collectively making change happen. Perfectionism keeps us siloed, and prevents us from building relationships and potential collaborations. From allowing this moment of great change to transform us and how we show up. More often than not, we delay making moves that are the most risky, the most vulnerable, ones that have the most meaning until we "feel" ready.
Well, here is a full-on invitation to get messy. Permission to jump into the deep end. To step fully into your role or leadership position even if you feel like an imposter. To make a proposal. Take on a position or project you've been delaying. To say a radical YES And. As Kacey Cardin, a fellow coach, once said, "either the pain will push you or the vision will pull you. I'd much prefer to live a life guided by vision than pushed by pain."
What if today is that day?