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Pragmatism v Perfection

by TheWriteStuff
2 replies
Where do your inclinations lie? Do you slave and stew over a piece of copy in search of perfection and subsequently eat up valuable time that you need to spend on other tasks? Or do you take a pragmatic approach and sacrifice the strive for perfection for a best reasonable outcome so the rest of your work will get the time and attention it needs.Myself? Im a slave to perfection and tend to chew up silly amounts of time on simple pieces of copy. The reward is the feeling when it finally clicks, but the payment is wrecking my time management. Where do your inclinations lie?
#perfection #pragmatism
  • Profile picture of the author Chetr
    I understand your situation. Here`s an event I remember from the early days at my first agency job.

    So I`m sitting behind Jimbo, the Creative Director, who completes virtually all assignments, no matter how demanding, on time. I, on the hand, almost always found myself struggling and slaving...long after the agency.

    Now rigorous agency training gives you the ability to write good copy on demand, but that in no way protects you from ALL anxiety.

    So, one day, I ask Jimbo, `Hey, how come you always finish everything on time (and go home smiling to your lovely wife and kids)

    So, he says: Chet, whenever I get a project, I think about how much is it worth of my time, and then I give it that time.

    SMH. Caveat: he was good enough that his first draft could pass for someone else`s final. He could write flawless first drafts because he was also a trained editor, and proofreader.

    My tip, is to start working on getting good, and working with severe time constraints.

    It has helped me finish things in record time, things i found not bad at all, months later.

    Hope this helps.
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  • Profile picture of the author drewgood
    I don't have this all worked out yet, but I'm a perfectionist at heart, and I always want things to be flawless before putting them out there, but I've learned in recent years to try to make my copy, etc. great right away, knowing that I'll probably just keep revisiting it and keep tinkering with it after it's already published and available for public consumption.

    Until I've actually put it out there, my brain does't default to really fixing it anymore. It's a catch 22, so all I can do is keep taking action.
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