When is good enough, good enough?

I am by no means a perfectionist. Perfectionism is often seen as a higher trait that some present as a self-deprecating brag but in actual fact saying that one is a 'perfectionist' means one never can complete anything as there is no such thing as perfect. Well, one can argue that there is such a thing as perfectly imperfect which in that case, I am a perfectionist too.

But, if it's a job worth doing, it's a job worth doing right, right? What is good enough when it comes to our personal standard of work? When are we satisfied by the job we have done?

I cannot speak for the perfectionists or the perfectly imperfectionists, I can only speak for myself. I am someone that wants to consistently do a good job and in fact, I always do my absolute best. My best never slides.

A big statement by the sounds of it and one that is not supported by my body of work either at Steemit or anywhere else. But, it is true nonetheless. I am not the only one, you also do your absolute best every time you do something also. It is impossible to do otherwise. Even when one does what they know is not good, even if they look back and judge their own actions harshly, in the moment, what else could be done?

In each moment, even though it appears we have endless options in front of us, we only have the ones we can personally consider and the human brain is primed to think in quite predictable ways based upon the pre-existing framework. Even when we see options and say, this is what I will do, our skill set limits our ability to do so.

Plus, there are a whole range of other factors that we cannot really consider in the moment but in planning or hindsight they could be identified. We may not want to do something that we do because our willpower in the moment to stop the behaviour is too weak. Or, we may have intentions to do something brilliantly, but a tired mind fails to provide the motivational drive or motor skills to perform well.

As complicated living organisms, we are in a continual state of flux that is under constant influence from every factor that can possibly influence upon it. Our bodies are constantly being pushed and pulled, our minds too. And our emotions, well for most, are swinging more wildly than a drunk amateur boxer in a room full of mirrors.

Yesterday when we performed one way, this way cannot be repeated today for we have changed. Every moment we exist, our conditions are somewhat different from any other moment we have ever or will ever exist in and the longer the time exposure to influencing factors, the more they change. When we try to hold onto 'who we are' what are we trying to do? And, when we judge someone on what they did, 'who are they' we now judge?

A person can change radically throughout a lifetime, a person can change radically in an instant. All massive change needs is a catalyst, a match to ignite a raging fire. Perhaps that revolution of the mind is what sends a mild-mannered person into a pit of anger and misery. Perhaps it is what pulls another from the same pit.

But, in each moment, how much control do we really have? Perhaps none as in the moment, our actions are rather thoughtless as the framework, habits and programming take hold to produce the result. If this was not the case, once a bowler bowls a perfect 300 game, they will never again bowl a 299. Why would they? But, consistency is the key.

Reframing the mind and body, pulling apart the programming line by line and recoding it to produce improved results. The consistency comes from process and the better the process, the less effect the influencing factors have. But, the process must also continually change and develop, it must be sensitive for the environment it operates within is also changing.

Saying I am incapable of doing different is a lie, for each moment we are all doing different. What we are talking about is what we have chosen to pay attention to or chosen to ignore, rather than us as a vastly complex being. We demand others not limit us but generally, we do most of the limiting ourselves.

We can all do much better than we are, we can also all do much worse. The idea of a 'good and bad' person should be discarded as it is their actions in the moment we are judging, not what they would do now given their changed being.

Yes, he should have known better, but in the moment, he didn't and even if he had known, he didn't have had the skill set to do better at the time. Otherwise, he would have.

We are not our best results, or our worst results, we are not our actions, our thoughts, our religion, value system or any other concept on wants to apply. If we are any of these types of things, who are we when we change them?

Doing our best in any moment is a given, but doing better or worse tomorrow is not. What does any of this mean for you? Maybe nothing. But for me, their is no good enough, not because enough is a subjective word but rather, good is. It is just a handy place holder that sets the bar for tomorrow.

Taraz
[ A Steemit original ]