Perfectionists doing mission driven work

Perfectionists doing mission-driven work: I see you, carrying the weight of the world on your shoulders.

I see you, fighting injustice, trying to remake the world as it “should be.”

I see you, working long hours to get to the perfect answer for those you serve.

I see you, fearing what will happen if you report any “failure” to your funders.

I see you, feeling like it’s all on you to create change as quickly as possible.

I see you, understand you, love you.

But you can’t carry the weight of the world on your shoulders.

As perfectionists, when we see the world as it “should be,” we have a tendency to start to see ourselves as we “should be.” To achieve our perfect world, we don’t allow ourselves:

-Mistakes

-Breaks

-Vulnerability

What would happen if:

→ You shared that weight with other colleagues?

→ You pursued excellence in place of the impossible, removing ego from the equation?

→ You took care of yourself in the process of taking care of others?

→ You courageously broadcast all that you learned from your missteps?

→ We all challenged funders to see where solutions are often complex, take time to produce lasting change?

Would our outcomes get better, worse, somewhere in between? You know where I stand. But what do you think? What perspective am I not seeing?