Inside the "It's gotta be perfect" mindset

We all have unconscious patterns of behaviours that drive our actions and decisions.It's a fascinating topic, in fact, and today I'll focus on one of the 5 drivers that I find quite often in the coaching sessions I have with marketers - the "Be perfect" one. It might not sound like you, but read on as it may be the drive that some of your team members or direct reports (or any colleagues really) have and I'll share with you how to spot it, work with them/help.

Simply put, the "Be perfect" driver is characterised by a strong need for perfectionism. Marketers with this driver often set super high standards for themselves.....not just that, but also for others! And they constantly strive to meet these expectations.

Let's have a look at what signs you can spot, what impact does this have, and what triggers it!

If you are (or your team member is) a "Be perfect" marketer, you're likely to:

• You worry getting something wrong / making mistakes
• You want to work out every last detail before offering a proposal or presentation for comment
• You insist on getting it exactly right when a rough approximation would be more useful
• You want to get things right the first time
• You keep on and on, to complete a task long after your productive energy has been used up
• Have a super critical inner voice that constantly judges your performance
• You're well organised
• But may become more and more single minded - only seeing own point of view.
• A tendency to be controlling, which may be seen as micro-managing by your team
• You do well in marketing tasks/jobs where detail is important and the set standards are essential

What are the consequences of this?

• Poor time planner as you keep checking even if no longer necessary / when others would rather see a draft (eg. marketing director or cross-functional team member)
• Not collaborative or the best team player: you'd rather check things yourself rather than trust others to do it (including your direct reports who will be unhappy about the lack of empowerment)
• Dislike others' criticism: you go out of your way to avoid it, in fact. And it often gets complicated
• More difficult to work with impatient colleagues/bosses: you will get highly distracted by a colleague who has a different driver called "Hurry up" which is about sense of urgency and impatience. 

What are the things that will trigger this driver to show up?

• Loss of control
• Lower standards or illogical behaviours by colleagues / bosses
• Overly concerned about being seen to be wrong
• Failure to achieve goals
• An organisational culture that doesn't accept and respect errors and mistakes

Is this a lost cause? If not, what to do about it?

Absolutely not. At their core, when they're at their best, these marketers have a great eye for details and will find solutions to issues that arise. Their strengths are an amazing assets. It's only at times of stress level where they're not at their best, that this "Be perfect" mindset will surface.

✅If you manage someone whose drive is a "Be perfect", you can help them bu allowing for them to make mistakes, and forgiving when errors are made. Be understanding of imperfect draft / proposals, and when things are incomplete. Otherwise, you'll encourage the "Be perfect" behaviours without intentionally want it.

✅If you do have a "Be perfect" tendency, realise that less than your best may be what is needed at this stage of the project, the stage of this brand presentation, be clear on what's expected and ponder whether the extra efforts to provide 300% is really worth your energy and time. 

Do reflect on your strengths and qualities when it comes to accuracy, organiasation, for example, and how this may have a poor impact on others who ahve different drivers or mode of thinking / working. 

In summary...

When I worked in marketing, I have come across some colleagues who were reading our next branded newsletter, with a finger on the laptop screen, proof-reading for the 4th time (not an exageration here), very slowly, so as to avoid any errors. I have also seen some others spending countless evening hours redoing slides, reworking spreadsheets just because it wasn't good enough in their heads.

What they failed to do, is to in fact focus their brand brain, marketing mind and reflections on bigger things, more pressant matters, instead of doing an equivalent of "locking the door 6 times, just to make sure - every single time they left the house".

There are ways to explore these unconscious behaviourial patterns (two "Be perfect" marketers are likely to have very different and unique reasons behind the same driver), undo these and create new healthy habits. Reach out to me if you need a quick chat or ask me a question!