Here's how you can use Emotional Intelligence to conquer perfectionism and boost productivity.

Meet Lisa, a perfectionist marketing manager. Tasked with a big presentation, she spent days tweaking every slide, getting nowhere fast. Enter Emotional Intelligence (EI). First, Lisa used self-awareness to catch herself obsessing over details. Next, she practiced self-regulation, setting a two-hour limit per slide. To stay motivated, she rewarded herself with cookies for every three slides completed. When her colleague Jake offered help, Lisa used empathy to trust him and delegated tasks. By Friday, the presentation was done, the client was thrilled, and Lisa felt accomplished. Thanks to EI, she conquered perfectionism and boosted her productivity—plus, she enjoyed some delicious cookies along the way!

I recently discovered that my perfectionism was rooted in a deep-seated need to prove my capabilities to others and to myself. This realization hit me when I wanted to start writing contributions like this one. I would delay starting because I wanted every word to be perfect. This mindset, however, often led to procrastination and stress. By recognizing this trigger, I learned to focus on progress rather than perfection. Now, I remind myself that it's okay to ask for help and that getting started is more important than achieving flawlessness from the get-go. This shift has boosted my productivity and reduced my anxiety, allowing me to contribute more effectively.

Ability to identify situations where perfectionism arises and understanding the emotions driving it helps in tackling the ill effects of perfectionism. And when one can acknowledge the Impact; ie how perfectionism affects your productivity, stress levels, and overall well-being, one can tweak/ enhance in areas that help come to outcomes more practical and effective than striving for perfection.

Managing expectations, especially those we set for ourselves, is crucial to overcoming perfectionism and boosting productivity. In my experience, I often set unrealistically high standards, aiming for perfection in every task. This mindset led to frustration and a sense of unfairness when I inevitably fell short. I realized that by not managing these expectations, I was being unfair to myself, expecting flawless results every time. This was a barrier to simply starting and progressing. Embracing emotional intelligence, I learned to set more realistic goals and to view each day as an opportunity for growth. This shift helped me become more productive and kinder to myself, focusing on continuous development rather than an unattainable ideal.

Give yourself grace! We are so quick to give other grace when things are working out. Giving yourself grace allows you to reflect on your triggers and how you can better self manage the highs and lows. When we are in the dispair, resentment, embarrassed, and uncertain emotions, our productivity is low...sometimes really low. We need to address those emotions and the thoughts and actions (or inaction) and move towards acceptance, courage and curiosity. When you allow yourself to accept the stumbling block, you will shift more quickly to a more productive place.

Perfection is driven by deeper layers within you.. Understanding what emotions drive you towards perfection and working on taking care of those deeper emotions will help you take care of perfection! Better productivity, better performance, success and ease are by products of EI.