You’re not perfect!

I heard a familiar refrain again last week.

"It’s not ready!"

I was working with a client whose LinkedIn profile and company page has been ‘nearly there’ for months.

But somehow it was never quite ready for her to press the ‘publish’ button.

She worried that it ‘wasn’t perfect’.

- The summary might not be professional enough

-My cover page needs updating

-I'm not sure if it has the right keywords or content

- The images might not project exactly the right impression

- I'm worried that I haven't got quite enough endorsement

I said: “You know what?” It doesn’t matter!

So there’s nothing wrong with a soft launch, where you test it out on a few people and make tweaks AFTER it’s published.

Which leads me to the second point...

Whether it's your Facebook page, LinkedIn profile, your 60 second pitch, it doesn't have to be PERFECT, because you can keep changing it as you grow!

You’re NOT perfect.

And that’s great!

Nobody else is either!

As a business owner, having perfectionist tendencies can push you to go that extra mile. While having high standards and goals is a profitable business strategy, and a great way to motivate your staff, but perfectionism can actually be detrimental to your success.

Here a 4 ways this mindset can harm your business;

1. You Never Take Risks

You are in charge of making the decisions that impact the productivity and growth of your business. You may shoot down new ideas, innovation or risky decisions if they arise if you're a perfectionist.

The willingness to adapt to change in your industry is a must if you want to stay competitive.

2.You're Afraid To Fail

Fear of failure is the number 1 fear as a business owner, and it's easy to cover that up with perfectionism. If it's perfect then what can go wrong!

3. You Hate Opposition

Although you may strive to be perfect, your management skills, marketing skills, ideas and work aren't. No one's are!

If you take extreme offence to feedback or are closed off to different ideas, you are hindering your business growth.

The most successful leaders adapt to new developments and changing circumstances and being a perfectionist can stop you from doing that.

4. Doing Everything Yourself

Perfectionists often feel the need to check everything with a fine-tooth comb or consistently reviewing the work of employees or outsourced work. Micromanaging others keeps people from meeting deadlines and being productive and creative and may drive them to cease the business relationship.

While it's good to let fear push you rather than control you, you run the risk of letting that mindset take over.

Once you have approved the project to outsource, delegate it and move on. You will feel better for it so you can relax, and allow your business to thrive.

Do any of these things stop you from growing your business? I'd love to hear your experiences in the comments.

www.businesstreeuk.co.uk