If I can give you (and everyone, including a gentle reminder to myself!) a tiny piece of advice, I’d say not to worry too much about having a single “turning point.” I’ve tried that many times, hoping that THIS time I’d found the magic bullet, and from now on everything would be better.

Great way to self-sabotage is more like it.

I’ve learned that it’s not the metaphorical lightning bolt that changes things forever, but a gradual process of becoming more and more aware of when you’re slipping into a certain pattern or way of seeing things. Progress is spotty, with lots of backsliding and forgetting.

That’s hard for me to accept because I’m so impatient, but over time I’m learning that just gently staying as aware as I can really does lead to change. Slower than I’d like, but at least the change feels *real.*

Anyway, stepping off soapbox now. Welcome again!

And Josiane made that most excellent observation–I just took it and ran with it .

::raises glass:: Here’s to doing things imperfectly!

I, erm, wouldn’t go to my doctor with that as an official medical diagnosis if I were you.

But you can certainly help me bring the word “procrastifectionism” into the public mainstream if you want! Because it’s a helpful concept . . . and also, frankly, how cool would it be if a word I invented became popular?

I’ve been trying hard to put it behind me this year, but I’ve fallen into a bit of a slump the past couple of weeks. I needed this post.

Oh, and the analogy of Kinetic vs. Potential Energy… simply brilliant!

Your mantra interest me because it almost forces you to ask the very important question, “So how do we define success?”

And then I realized that for me, the answer had always been that success EQUALLED perfection . . . therefore, it was always impossible for me to succeed. At anything.

These days I’m playing with other possible definitions of success. I’m still trying to find my way, but it’s a lot more pleasant so far.

Anyway, I’ve always had a problem with Procrastifectionism. But I had to lower my standards during college or risk never graduating. It was then I adopted the mantra “Aim for success, not perfection.”

Folks, if you’ve made it this far, do click on the link in Liz’s reply above. Ken says it much more poetically than I did. ;o)