How I'm overcoming my perfectionism

Mar 17, 2026

I’ve been writing this newsletter for 2.5 years now and, in that time, I’ve experienced a few periods of writing, followed by crickets.

I’d post regularly for a few months, then run out of steam and stop.

And, every time, it would be because of the pressure I’d put on myself. I’d be trying to write the best possible thing every time.

Another way of saying that is I didn’t want to make mistakes, or look foolish.

So my perfectionism was making the writing process painful.

Arduous.

Tedious.

Frustrating.

I’d write a sentence, immediately reread it, edit it five times over and only then go to the next one. Editing often felt like going around in circles.

The act of writing became synonymous with self-inflicted torment.

Under those conditions, I don’t think anything can be practiced for any degree of time without burning out.

But, the thing is, I do love to write.

I find a great deal of satisfaction writing down my thinking. And sharing it with you gives it an extra dimension of vulnerability, which is helping me grow.

So, what to do?

How can I overcome my perfectionism and retrain my mind to just do things in spite of fear?

I’ve adopted a very simple approach:

Every day, I pick something I want to say, I open a new draft and start a timer for 25 minutes.

Then I write down the first sentence, and then the next.

My only rule?

I cannot go back and change anything while I’m still writing.

Then, when I’m done, I reread the text once, correct any glaring mistakes — and then I hit publish.

No analyzing, no second guessing.

Perfectionism is nothing more than a protection against our own fears.

Fears that are stopping us from doing the things we actually want to do.

Till next time,

Ben

I’m curious, can you relate to this? What has your experience with perfectionism been?

Seeking Wisdom

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