Progress Over Perfection: A Guide to Mindful Productivity (12) (Live Well)

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I’m having this reaction because of my experiences with overzealous accessibility supporters whose comments hurt. Scolding people isn’t going to accomplish as much as educating people. I’ve heard the many reasons why the accessibility community does this. Occasionally, it’s called for especially when a company does not listen to them after they’ve tried the kinder approach. Don’t get me started on the airline industry’s treatment of wheelchairs.

Furthermore, there are no foods that if eaten once or twice, will measurably harm your body or cause you to gain significant amount of weight. Yes, some foods offer little nutritional value, like trans fat and artificial food. But these foods will only cause issues if they start to dominate your diet. This is great news because you can lose weight while enjoying the food that you love. So yes, you can have your cake and eat it too!Perfection, fortunately, is not the only alternative to mediocrity. A more sensible alternative is excellence. Striving for excellence is stimulating and rewarding; striving for perfection–in practically anything–is both neurotic and futile ~ Ed Bliss A progress mentality is rooted in the idea of growth. Growth is often defined as gradual development. We see the development physically as we grow from children into adults. We see it in other areas as well, from learning hard skills and critical thinking, to developing emotional maturity, improving relational connection, and everything in between.

The tone between these two types of thinking is like night and day. Perfectionist thinking is tough at best and brutal at worst, while progressive thoughts are forgiving, encouraging, and accepting. Renowned researcher and writer Brené Brown highlights an important distinction. “Perfectionism is not the same thing as striving to be your best,” she writes. “Perfection is not about healthy achievement and growth.” Besides, you’ll eventually run into, as Christopher Patnoe says, the accessibility paradox or as I like to call it Schrödinger’s a11y cat. (A11y is short for accessibility. There are 11 letters between A and Y.) So, what’s Schrödinger’s a11y cat? It means that something you do for accessibility could be an accessibility problem for someone else.

As a writer, it’s easy to get focused on finishing the book I’m writing, and never celebrating until I’m there. But staying up that extra half hour to finish a chapter is a victory worth celebrating. Nailing that scene, after trying it four times, is a milestone worth remembering. It may not be any of these. A few sound huffy in most interactions. I’ve been the subject of their anger, which is why I had a nightmare that woke me up. More on that later. Another example is captions. I know a hard of hearing person who prefers transcripts to captions. They need to see more lines. Many of us prefer traditional captions because transcripts give us cognitive overload. Dear Entertainment Industry, There’s no diversity, equity, and inclusion without disability. Disability is diversity .com. Designed by an all-disabled creative team and powered by Inevitable Foundation.”

If only achieving a “progress not perfection” perspective was so easy! Unfortunately, it’s not something you can learn how to do in a weekend. RELATED POST: 10-Step Method To Set Attainable Goals STRATEGY #2: Accept errors – Not all flaws are fatal If you follow the “Richmond Way” , it’s not about being #1; it’s about Leslie’s definition of how we can continue to move toward better. Because this is something, I need to remind myself constantly when working on my own “perfection” issues.

What does progress over perfection mean when it comes to accessibility? It means to get started. Don't wait until everything is done and perfect. The small steps make a big difference. It also means educating people who don't know about accessibility. Educate, don't berate. If the world needs more of anything, it's kindness.

You’ll replace these negative thoughts with new ways to speak kindly and supportively to yourself, rather than beating yourself up when you don’t get something absolutely perfect. If you are one given to progress, you will begin or start your task hoping that you will get better as you go on. This mindset will indeed help you progress and not worry about perfection. I’m already upset with myself and these replies make me feel worse. I become a pile of emotions as I’m upset with myself and the rude replies also made me feel angry. While writing this, heartburn appears. This experience feels real because it has happened to me.As children, we were often taught that perfection was the ultimate goal. Remember the phrase "practice makes perfect"? Let’s normalise “practice makes progress” from now on. And I’m not the only one who feels this way. In fact, there’s a mantra some people use that relates to what I’m talking about: “Progress, not perfection.”