I struggle with perfectionism. My childhood environment
likely contributed to this tendency. Because I used to teach time management
and spoke of the dangers of perfectionism, I hadn’t recognized it in myself
until I was first introduced to the Enneagram. When I read about Enneagram type
One, I realized I could not deny this part of who I am.
A social media post circulating just prior to Lent
motivated me to practice a Lenten discipline of letting go of perfectionism.
What I am realizing is just how subtle and insidious the demon of perfectionism
acts in my life. I catch myself more often than I would have expected beating
myself up for failing to do something I feel I ought to do.
Shoulds and oughts are the love language of the
perfectionism demon! Grace is the antidote to combat the negative self-talk of should
and oughts. Holding my successes and failures with equal grace is the
discipline I am seeking to cultivate. The patience I extend to others who fail
I also need to extend to myself.
I don’t expect to arrive at Easter Sunday
perfectionism-free. The tendency is deep within me. However, as Enneagram
literature tells me, the gift of being a One is the desire to improve the
world. Improving the world means improving myself, and improving myself means
allowing myself to fail with grace and without shame.
