Creative Spirit Blog May 17, 2026 Perfectionism Can Be Your Enemy!

A Night Walk Mixed Media Collage

“Imperfection inspires invention, imagination, creativity.  It stimulates.  The more I feel imperfect, the more I feel alive.”  Jhumpa Lahiri

Perfectionism is widely considered the enemy of the creative process. When we demand flawless execution in our early starts and need to know step by step where we are going, chances are we are going to fail.  

When we feel we must do a job perfectly we produce within ourselves a fear of failure. We start to procrastinate, which paralyzes our decision making. We develop insecurities. We start to think I am not good enough and depend on the approval of others.  We all want to produce good work.  But if our need to be perfect is at the core of a project, we will not do a good job.

Creativity thrives on exploration, risk-taking, and making mistakes. When we as creators shift our focus from the perfect final product to the messy process of discovery, we unblock our creative voice. By letting the magic flow and taking chances we allow ourselves to develop a healthy sense of self-discovery, which then stimulates our imagination and creativity.

“Peace of mind and creative freedom come from the release of perfection” Jill Badonsky

Perfectionism is not the same as striving to do our best. It’s not about personal achievement, growth and self-improvement. At its core it’s about earning acceptance and approval.  Are those things bad? No. They are normal human needs. But they should not be our goal.

So, what does make a good piece of art? What should we be striving for? First this is very subjective.  What one person feels is good or likes another may not.  But speaking, academically, it’s the ability to create a deep, lasting connection between the viewer and the artists vision through emotional impact, technical mastery of the medium used, and originality.

Good art sparks a visceral or emotional reaction, such as joy, nostalgia, or unease, rather than just being aesthetically pleasing.  It offers a unique, personal voice that challenges perceptions rather than mimicking existing work. The work reflects a pure, honest vision from the artist, often representing significant time and dedication.  It connects with the viewer in a way that feels true, often bridging the gap between the viewer's experience and the artist’s intent. It takes time and experimentation to see what works.

I have written a lot about playing. Play helps us find ourselves and helps us discover what is important to us.  It helps us find what we want our message to be and the best way to say it.   I love to make a mess.  Then I have something which stimulates my creative juices.  I may plan a color scheme, the materials I would like to use in a collage piece, and I may lay out a format; but what goes on top of that and whether I use all the pieces I have pulled out I have no idea when I start. What goes into my paintings comes from playing around with various materials and enjoying the process. Seeing what looks good and what compositionally works.

If you take the time to read about the lives of great artists, in all media, it takes them days, weeks, months, sometimes years to complete a work of art. Not because they are perfectionists, but because they want their work to be original, unique, and interesting enough to hold the viewers attention.

“Only when he know longer knows what he is doing does the painter do good things”  Edgar Degas