Perfectionist

There are a lot of people out there that just don't get it. If you are one of those, then your house is probably clean, your laundry done, fresh sheets on the bed, and just don't understand how some people let there houses get so messy. (You also probably think we are nuts)

I am a perfectionist. How in the world does a perfectionist have a messy house? I didn't understand it either until I learned about the Fly Lady. It turns out that many SHE's (sidetracked home executives) are perfectionists.

Perfectionism is a funny thing. I don't just want to finish a task, I want to do it 200%. If I don't have time to finish it, I don't start it. Part of what Fly Lady is about is learning to do things, and understanding that a job done wrong is better than a job not done at all. Oh that is hard. Let me give an example. I look at a messy bathroom. I don't know where to start. I see clothes on the floor, toiletries on the counter, and I "see" cabinets that need sorted and cleaned out, a closet that needs organized, and so much more! I don't want to just go in and scrub the toilet, shower, sink and wipe of the counter. I want to go in empty out at the cabinets, organize them, find everything a home, purge unused items, scrub everything down, wipe all the baseboards, sweep and mop. I know that this is not a quick 10 minute job and I tell myself that it will be easier to keep up if I can just take a couple hours and get it "perfect." Then I look at all of the jobs in my house that I want done to this stage of perfection, how many hours they would all take together. I look around, feel trapped, totally helpless, not knowing where to start.

Pathetic, I know. Perfectionism...yuck.