Note: This article first appeared March 26th, 2014 and has been updated.

When the same topic shows up repeatedly in client sessions over a short period of time, it always gets my attention.

A significant number of my clients have recently been reporting that they are struggling with a tendency towards perfectionism. They tell me that it's getting in the way of their completing tasks and making progress.

Perfectionism generally shows up in two ways.

The first and most common way is spending way too much time on a task to make sure it is just perfect before moving on. This is especially prevalent when you are working on something that other people will see, such as creating a product or service for your business.

This kind of perfectionism becomes problematic because it causes us to fall behind schedule, or never get to the other tasks we need to address.

The second way that perfectionism presents itself is when we never make a start on certain tasks because of the subconscious fear that they won't turn out perfectly.

When humans lived in nomadic tribes many thousands of years ago, the world was a treacherous place. Danger lurked around every corner and we were hardwired for caution and safety. Humans didn't start anything they couldn't finish for fear of depleting precious reserves of energy that might be needed in a life threatening situation.

It's an understatement to point out that neither of these outcomes are useful!

Perfection Is Protection

At its core, perfectionism is really about keeping us safe. It is much less about something needing to be perfect because perfect is better, and more about fearing what may go wrong if it is not perfect.

Subconsciously you might worry that if something is not perfect:
It will end badly
You will be judged as not good enough
Others won’t trust you in the future
You will be found out to be a fraud

Those concerns might seem extreme, especially when perfectionism is focused on small daily tasks, but in reality that is what is happening.

What Could Go Wrong?

Below are some simple steps to help you interrupt your drive towards perfection.

I encourage you to tap the entire time you are doing this process. When I do exercises like this one, I often tap on my collar bone with my left hand and write out my answers with my right.

1. First, imagine taking and completing the action you are struggling with.
2. Next, tune in to whatever physical sensation arises when you are thinking about the action you are resisting. Ask that sensation “What would go wrong if I don’t do this perfectly?”
3. Ask the sensation “What proof do I have that this is true?” This is one of my favorite questions because it reveals whatever is propping up the belief that something could go wrong. Does it produce a memory from the past? Tap on it! Does it unveil a limiting belief that we know isn’t true? Tap on it!
4. Continue to tap on whatever comes up in response to these two questions!

By undermining the “proof,” we can also undermine the belief that something could go wrong. And when the fear of something going wrong is dislodged, then perfectionism doesn’t arise because it no longer needs to keep us safe. This leads us to taking more action, more progress, and feeling more comfortable with sharing our work with others.