There’s a subtle but important difference between wanting peak performance and expecting peak performance.
Wanting it is healthy.
Expecting it - every time, in every situation - is where things quietly start getting very dicey.
No matter how good you are, there is always something that could’ve been done better.
Even in your best games on your best days.
There’s always that one missed assignment.
There’s that one rushed decision.
There’s that one free throw you normally make.
Even when you play “perfect,” perfection still isn’t real. There’s always nuance. Always context. Always layers.
That’s not a flaw in the system. That is the system.
Expecting perfection does two things, and neither of them helps you grow.
1. You beat yourself up when you miss it
Perfection leaves no room for being human.
You could execute 95% of the plan flawlessly, but that 5% becomes the only thing you remember. Instead of acknowledging what went right, your mind zooms in on the one slip-up.
We’ve all been there:
A great workday ruined by one awkward meeting
A strong week of training overshadowed by one bad session
A disciplined month financially undone in your head by one unnecessary purchase
When perfection is the standard, anything less feels like failure, even when it’s clearly not.
2. You lose the ability to judge mistakes properly
There’s a saying we should all live by:
Not all mistakes are created equal.
Missing a shot because you took the right look is not the same as missing because you rushed. Losing money because you followed your system is not the same as losing it because you ignored your rules.
Forgetting one task is not the same as abandoning the process altogether.
However, when perfection is the expectation, all mistakes get thrown into the same bucket.
Big or small.
Correctable or careless.
Learning moment or bad habit.
They all get labeled the same: failure.
Once that happens, learning stops.
Mistakes Aren’t the Enemy, Avoiding Them Is
Mistakes aren’t something to fear.
Not hitting perfection isn’t something to worry about.
For us OG Millennials, the goal has never been perfection, it’s always been progress.
Mistakes are the tuition. They’re the feedback. They’re how we sharpen judgment, refine instincts, and build real competence.
Think about it:
You didn’t get better at your job by never messing up
You didn’t build discipline without trial and error
You didn’t develop confidence by always getting it right
You learned because you missed, adjusted, and tried again.
The real skill isn’t avoiding mistakes, it’s shortening the time between:
Making the mistake
Understanding it
Applying the lesson
Speed of Learning = Speed of Progress
This is the part that most people miss:
Your ability to accept, analyze, and learn from mistakes directly determines how fast you succeed.
Not talent.
Not motivation.
Not intensity.
Two people can make the same mistake.
One ruminates, spirals, and loses momentum
The other reviews it, extracts the lesson, and moves forward
Same mistake. Completely different outcome.
Mistakes will always sting. That part doesn’t go away.
They’ll frustrate you. They’ll humble you. They’ll test your patience.
They’re also proof that you’re in motion.
Progress only happens in that motion.
Final Thought
Yes, mistakes hurt.
Yes, you want to avoid them.
Yes, they’re uncomfortable.
They’re also necessary.
So don’t dwell.
Don’t harp.
Don’t let one imperfect moment erase the bigger picture.
Embrace the process. Get better at learning. Get faster at adjusting. That’s how progress compounds.
Perfection is static.
Progress moves.
We move forward. Always.
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Progress over perfection. Every time.