Build a Website that Sells Your Service Online So You Can Transform Lives, and Create Impact
I don’t know about you, but I have perfectionistic tendencies. My clients tend to have them too. Striving for perfection isn’t a bad thing in and of itself. I know that in my corporate career, it served me well. Perhaps it served you well, too.
However, perfectionism can really get in your way when you’re building an online business. In fact, ideas like "do it right the first time" and a mentality of “perfectly perfect” is something to watch out for and work on. For me, it’s a never-ending mindset exercise. But the exercise is worth it, because if you go for perfection in everything all the time, you’ll go broke and the overwhelm will bring you down.
So, here are 7 ways that your perfectionism can hurt your online business.
1. You may try to get the best tools before you’re actually ready for them, causing you overwhelm and adding needless spending.
In online business, there's a wide range of tools for every task from email marketing to online courses. It’s tempting to say oh, big-name-so-and-so is using this top-of-the-line tool, so if they’re using it, then we should use it too.
We may think it’ll save us the switching costs down the line when our business grows or that because it’s the most comprehensive, feature-rich solution, then it must be the best for us, too.
The reality is that feature-rich can mean complex, where you want simple. And these top-of-the-line tools are geared to advanced users who can reap the rewards from paying the high premium, you’ll just be paying for more than you need.
So, instead of going for the best now, go for the best for now, and keep going. Pick tools that match the needs and budget of your business now or a little further down the line, but not beyond. As your business expands and income grows, you can naturally upgrade to the next level of tools.
2. You may try to make everything perfect where you should focus your investment where it counts.
Yes, providing top-notch service might be the right way to go, but that doesn’t mean everything about your business needs to be top-notch. For example, your online presence and the suite of tools you use are usually not what clients are paying you for and not why they want to work with you. So, these aspects of your business don’t need to be perfect. They need to be functional, professional, and fit your brand.
To be clear, you shouldn’t employ things that will hurt your brand, diminish from the value you create, or make your day-to-day work difficult; there is a threshold and you shouldn’t go below it. But, when you make investment decisions, consider what makes your brand unique for your ideal client and remember that many times good enough is absolutely perfect.
3. You may try to “get it right the first time,” instead of starting and making it better later.
The digital advantage is huge for online business—use it!
The digital world allows for edits, updates, and iterations. It's not a static billboard on a highway or a five million dollars’ worth Superbowl ad (where you put money down and hope for the best). It's a dynamic interface that you can tweak as you go along.
While you should certainly be professional, align with your brand, and offer value, you also have the freedom to fill gaps, handle unforeseen issues, and make things better later.
4. You may end up in a constant cycle of learning instead of gaining your own experience and applying it.
This one is a true risk for me. I’m so used to doing things from a position of knowledge and I so enjoy learning that if I don’t pay attention, I can end up learning forever. I now tell myself when I get distracted by a shiny new learning path (and that’s true for free ones too): if you want to get this training, you must first finish these things that move the needle for your business RIGHT NOW. (Ever did a learning cleanse? Try it.)
Here are things we tell ourselves…. “I just have to nail down this <
The best thing you can do for your business if you’re starting out or if you’re adding something new is get hands-on experience and results for yourself. Because what works for you and your ideal client is unique. You may think you know what perfect looks like, but when you actually do things in real life, you may find that you’ve had things wrong. What you’ve spent your time perfecting, as perfect as it is, may just be wrong for your brand.
As a side note, I’m more likely to say yes to trainings that offer shortcuts to my current destination (so, those that help me with what I’m implementing now based on my plan). For example, I got a Facebook Ads Training when I needed to run ads, that way I didn’t have to figure out what’s currently working on Facebook ads (because 🤯). It’s saved me time and money. It even made me money = Allowed!
5. You may miss the boat trying to make something perfect only to find that by the time you’re done, it’s no longer special, needed, or working.
The online world moves FAST. Tools are introduced, and things become trendy, so you get an idea, and you start creating.
If you don’t set a deadline and stick to it, by the time you’re ready, it may be too late. There’ll be way more competition, or the trend will pass. Or worse, whatever you created may no longer work because technology has changed, or policies have, or maybe just the market.
6. You may try to consider ALL the options to make the best decision, but there are SO MANY OPTIONS.
It’s just the nature of the beast and it can be paralyzing. Put a deadline on research or limit yourself to so many hours. If you can’t decide, perhaps you don’t need it. Or it might be time to talk to an expert or ask your community for advice.
7. You may try to make everything scalable and delegable (it’s a word!!!) but dude, please, start with ONE.
Seriously, scalability is nice, but only if it doesn’t hold you back. Fine, if all you need to do is put a little more thought before you get started, sure, go ahead make it scalable.
But otherwise—you’re just holding yourself back with the “big organization mentality.” Instead, start, so you can grow and then scalability and delegation will matter.
Well, here you go, seven ways that your perfectionism can hurt your online business. And we didn't even touch on the emotional price of perfectionism… 🙄
So, what to do instead?
Drop Perfectionism & Adopt This Mentality Instead: Start Simple, and Grow as You Go.
>> It means giving ourselves permission to start where we are.
>> It means simplifying to the level of what matters most.
>> It means allowing the freedom to iterate, improve, adjust, and evolve, creating an agile business, which is what you need to thrive in the online space.
>>It means learning by doing and learning while doing, so we keep and grow momentum.
And doesn't it just make it all the more fun? 😁
Easier said than done? Too big of a shift for a long-time perfectionist? I don’t think so. What if you looked at it differently....
When you adopt the start simple, grow as you go mentality, you’re basically adopting the mantra of gradually perfecting.
Tell yourself that yes, you’re starting now with something that while imperfect, is good enough to offer true value, and that’s OK because it allows you to learn in the real current world and for your own particular brand what perfection really means. Then—and this is the best part—you’ll have the chance to perfect things forever, taking an area where you can see that growth will add value and making it better.
You know what, an online brand might actually be the perfect thing for the perfectionist because it changes over time so there’s always something to improve, what can be better? 😉
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