Perfect Is the Enemy of Good

When someone asks me, “s’whattaya do?”, I have a difficult time providing a straight answer. These days, I suppose any of these would be acceptable answers:

• Software Artisan
• Philosopher
• Amateur Blogger
• Author
• Investor
• Entrepreneur
• Human With Two Dogs
• Computer Person
• Techie
• Nerd
• Former Lyft Driver
• Autodidact
• Potato Farmer

People often get too attached to job titles and labels, but in truth, you can put whatever you want on your résumé and there’s nothing anyone can do to stop you. (They could verify your employment history or other facts, but you are free to identify with whichever profession you choose.)

For me, I simply enjoy getting shit done. I’m good at doing whatever needs to be done, and while I have preferences regarding what to work on, if I’m physically capable of performing a task, I can probably do a decent job of it. I like to go deep on whatever I’m working on, and I like to do a good job of it.

I do, however, sometimes find myself seeking perfection in my work, which can be a huge roadblock to success for many people.

Perfection Isn’t Perfect #

There are several problems with achieving perfection. The first is that perfection is strictly unattainable. This is a goal that can never be reached, at least for any sufficiently complex problem. I suppose it might be possible for the simplest of works—perhaps producing the most perfect 10×10 pixel image of the color #ffffff—but I’ll ignore such arguments.

Even if you genuinely and confidently believe you can produce perfect work (you can’t), it’s unlikely that anyone will be able to judge it as such. If you are the arbiter of greatness for whatever you’re trying to produce, you must be such a model of perfection yourself that no one else would even know how to recognize your work as perfection.

Embracing Imperfection #

Diving deeper into this rabbit hole, you may begin to notice something fascinating: true masterpieces are chock full of imperfection. This raises an excellent question: “Is imperfection what makes a masterpiece?”

I’d argue that imperfection is a core feature of humanity—it’s what separates us from computers and makes people relatable. It’s why computer-generated art will never be real art. Part of what makes Van Gogh’s paintings so special is his own life story, in addition to his skills and technique. Computer-generated art is nothing more than statistical mimicry. While it’s just as useful as stock photography in marketing material or covering hotel lobby walls, it’s not really art in the proper sense. There’s certainly a place in the world for computer-generated images, but that place is at the lowest tier of art: advertisements, commercial real estate, propaganda, and the entire superhero genre.

Evoking an Emotional Reaction #

Art is entirely subjective, but good art evokes an emotional reaction. For example, while I don’t particularly enjoy Taylor Swift’s music, I respect her as an artist because her songs are authentic, and it’s evident from her performances that she’s deeply passionate about her work. She connects with her fans on a level that can’t be repackaged, rebundled, or reused for commercial purposes simply because the mere act of doing so would cancel out any authenticity.

Taylor Swift evokes an emotional reaction within her “Swifties” that only makes sense when you understand that Taylor Swift herself is imperfect, as are her fans, and they connect over those shared imperfections. While I’m no expert on Taylor Swift, a cursory glance at her lyrics suggests most songs are about the trials and tribulations of navigating romantic relationships in a world with too many dating app options. I can’t relate to this because my experience with dating apps has been one of being ignored, ghosted, and rejected—presumably over trivial matters or simply a lack of mutual interest. These apps have conditioned people to seek perfection, which, as we’ve established, is unattainable.

Take this piece from Taylor Swift’s “Cruel Summer,” where she explores relationship challenges:

And it’s new, the shape of your body
It’s blue, the feeling I’ve got
And it’s ooh, whoa, oh
It’s a cruel summer
It’s cool, that’s what I tell ’em
No rules in breakable heaven
But ooh, whoa oh
It’s a cruel summer
With you

She appears to be lamenting that her chosen partner doesn’t equally reciprocate her affection. My suggestion would simply be to move on to the next one.

Even with eight billion people on this planet, not one is perfect. Perhaps a key source of relationship dissatisfaction is this imbalance: we’ve learned to embrace our own imperfections while failing to extend the same compassion to the flaws in others.

The Beauty of Good Enough #

Voltaire famously wrote, “Perfect is the enemy of good,” and this wisdom applies to virtually everything in life. Waiting for perfection often means never shipping anything, never finishing that painting, never publishing that book, and never launching that business.

The truly successful people I know aren’t perfectionists—they’re iterative improvers who understand when something is good enough to share with the world. They refine as they go rather than polishing endlessly behind closed doors.

So next time you find yourself stuck in the perfection trap, remember: imperfection is what makes us human, what connects us to others, and ultimately what allows us to create work that resonates. Don’t let perfect be the enemy of done.