Perfect Vs Progress: Managing Perfectionism in Grad School

Written by Serigne Thiam, Graduate Assistant for the Graduate College

It’s perfectly fine to pursue excellence in your graduate studies — graduate school is a space where excellence should be expected. But at what point does that expectation boil over? When your desire to produce flawless work, attend every workshop, or have the most experience-studded resume becomes overwhelming? Perfectionism — typically regarded as a positive trait— can lead to a myriad of challenges such as burnout, procrastination, and anxiety.

Your high standards are important  but learning when to say “this is good enough” is a vital skill for academic, personal, and professional success. Forgoing perfectionism isn’t giving yourself carte blanche to settle for mediocrity or just “getting by”; it’s about maintaining a balanced approach to every challenge life throws your way. Let’s explore perfectionism, the impact it can have on your life, and how redefining your mindset can shift your outlook.

Perfectionism, or the disposition to regard anything short of perfection as unacceptable, is a trait that can be ingrained early in life via multiple pathways. Some people become perfectionists playing video games, in their studies, or their work; virtually any activity or task can invoke a perfectionistic mindset. You’ll naturally have a disposition to allocate a lot of your time and energy towards the things or ideas you deeply care about. When you really care for something, that’s when perfectionism rears its head. As a graduate student, you face a unique blend of pressures that can reinforce a perfectionistic mindset, such as academic pressures, the age-old comparison trap, and the fear of falling short. These challenges, in collusion with perfectionism, can cultivate a common trap that students across the globe face: procrastination.

The fear of not doing something perfectly in combination with challenges can lead you to the paradox of productivity. When you feel frustrated with your quality of work, it becomes much easier to put things off and remedy the mental dissonance. Suddenly, you find yourself putting off that paper, that assignment, virtually anything. You’re not alone — many of your fellow graduate students deal with the productivity paradox. The key to breaking this loop is to recognize when your perfectionism is impeding your progress and inhibiting your emotional balance. Or, embracing “good enough.”

Instead of defining success as perfection, think of your work or tasks as progress. Is your work clear? Is it robust and profound? Do you feel confident in your work? If your answer is yes, your work is good enough. Answering yes to these questions isn’t settling for mediocrity but accepting real, tangible progress. This position may seem easier said than done, but it’s a crucial step to overcoming perfectionism. A perfectionistic mindset inherently devalues progress in favor of completion. When you allow yourself to value the journey, your arrival is much more enjoyable. 

Mistakes aren’t failures; they’re part of learning. Instead of regarding mistakes as total failures, see them as opportunities to build on your progress. Adopting this mindset will help you reframe your imperfections as part of the learning process. Graduate education is about growing every aspect of yourself, not just your academics or professional endeavors. Seeking more feedback on your work is also vital to reframing your growth mindset. It’s never a good idea to delay showing a mentor or advisor your work because you’re dissatisfied with it; you should seek advice and criticism whenever possible. Feeling like you must work through your failures and present flawless material is antithetical to having a growth mindset. 

Completing your tasks over perfecting them is one of the most important mindsets shifts you can make to avoid perfectionism. You may have found yourself in a never-ending cycle of wasting time and energy on minor refinements. The truth it, most things don’t need to be perfect – they just not to be done. The first draft or version of an assignment or paper won’t be your final one. Your project doesn’t have to be revolutionary to be valued by your peers or professors. Ultimately, your work should be finished with care and growth in mind.

Perfectionism can feel motivational, but it often creates unnecessary stress, stagnation, and can induce anxiety. By shifting your approach from “perfect” to “good enough”, you can complete your work more efficiently and with less anxiety. The next time you find yourself stuck rewriting the same paragraph, pause and reflect on how far you’ve come. Give yourself credit, enjoy the journey, and move forward!