atelophobia

Atelophobia is the fear of imperfection, the fear of never being good enough. 

At some level, at some time, we have all wondered if we “had what it takes.” I used to think that as I moved up in the world and advanced in the hierarchy of my chosen profession I’d sooner or later meet the “real experts”, the ones who had it all together, who REALLY knew what they were doing, that weren’t winging it or making it up as they went along. Somehow, without really thinking about it, I’d assumed they all lived in New York or Boston or Washington D.C., the megalopolises where the intellectual elite gathered. 

Surprise! Everyone puts their pants on one leg at a time and everyone has feet of clay in one way or another. Most of the time, we succeed not because we have no weakness or flaws but in spite of them, mainly by working hard enough to overcome them. Most successful folk are far, far from perfect, even in their chosen field. They succeed not because they are without faults but because they surmount them by dint of hard, hard work.

You are all you need; you are good enough. Find your star, focus your energies, hone your talents and you will live the life of your dreams.


Closing Quotes:

“You don’t have to be perfect to be perfectly okay.” – Nathan S. Collier
“Our doubts are traitors and keep us from the good we might otherwise obtain.” – Shakespeare, Measure for Measure, Act I, Scene IV
“The cave we fear to enter holds the treasure we seek.” – Joseph Campbell, 1904-1987

As always, I share what I most want/need to learn. – Nathan S. Collier