Good leadership means knowing when to go for 'good enough

Good leadership means knowing when to go for 'good enough' - for yourself and your team.

An article in CEOWORLD magazine explains how increments and iterations are the new perfect.

How do you do it?

1. Set a course for good enough rather than the pointless pursuit of perfection.

2. Stop expecting or requiring perfection. Accept first drafts, rough cuts and mock ups. The design industry and many other sectors thrive on them, gaining early feedback, ensuring efficiency of work going forward.

3. Make the standard clearer. Great leaders clarify the end goal or outcome, beyond a generic call for ‘high quality or ‘really good’. Explain the standard in a measurable way.

4. Improve over time. Allow learning, iterations and insights to build on first attempts.

The best and brightest organisations know the power of improving over time rather than expecting perfect. Most of all, assess whether you can go for ‘ish’ - somewhat, near enough - on more things, where near enough is good enough. Is 'ish' feasible, doable or acceptable? It’s a major productivity gain and it’s more motivating for teams when they complete work.

Not a perfectionist?

Not a perfectionist, just going for high standards. High standards are important. Need to keep working on this thing, tweaking it, making it 'better'.

This article in Yahoo Finance identifies four signs of perfectionism:

1. ‘Not good enough, yet’

2. There’s no end in sight to a project or task

3. Keep tweaking and tinkering

4. Working late or long hours Is this you or someone you know?

Read more via the article...

It's not binary

I’ve posted recently on productivity, quality and getting out of your own way.

My new book ’ish - The problem with our pursuit for perfection and the life changing practice of good enough’ is out now.

A fear I’ve heard is: if we 'ish' anything it will mean the ‘crapification’ of everything. People will care less, do less and not bother about anything anymore.

But woah there, wait a moment; ish isn't that binary, on/off, black/white. 'ish' means somewhat, approximately and it's not for every situation.

'To ish or not to ish’ is one of the book's chapters. Some things are suitable to be good enough or 'ish', others not.

You see, perfectionism is a problem, a growing global addiction causing depression, anxiety, overthinking, burnout, insomnia and other health issues. It’s worth finding ways to tackle our unhealthy pursuit for perfect that shows up in our daily thinking, behaviours, tasks, activities and projects.

Join me as we find new ways to think and work that don't require our pursuit for perfection but rather help us go for things that are fit for purpose.

The road to nowhere

There you are about to start a new project or task. You're ready to go. You're ready to start ... but do you know when or where you will stop? Might you end up working on this task, idea or project and it has no known end?

How do you know where the end is?

I've learned much working with software developers these past 10 years; they work out the 'definition of done' before they even get started. How smart is that! To know when you'll be 'done' before you even get going!

The alternative is that crazy space where you start but you don't know what the finish looks like. Well you do, but it's a conjuring, your imagination at work, creating an image in your mind.

We're clever humans but bringing a mental image into reality is a tricky thing to do. This is why the pursuit of perfect is such a waste. The image keeps changing and we don't know when to stop.

Before you get started, work out where you will stop. Marathon runners do it; airlines, pilots and planes do it; taxis, trains and Ubers do it; chefs with recipes do it. What are you or the team working on right now that has no defined stop point? You're on a road to nowhere.

Pause, define the stop point and then re-start.

Keep it moving through the team

Playing well on a team means not slowing things down unnecessarily or holding things up. To collaborate, contribute, do our bit or add our expertise to a piece of work, is a fundamental part of work.

It's rare we work in total isolation - unless in our own business - even then, we might have a team member, suppliers and ... customers.

Do you know how your working style impacts the 'flow' of work through the team? Are you searching for 'more' or to make something you're working on 'better' before it's 'done' or handed on to others?

Perfectionism and the pursuit of 'right' isn't just an individual thing; it has a huge flow on effect for the wider team and beyond through the organisation, to customers and clients.

This article talks about the impact of perfectionism on the team.

Have you been slowed down in a team where someone might be going for perfect?

Love to hear your thoughts.