Don't let perfection stand in the way of success.

I'm writing this post to talk about a potential problem for good ideas. There is nothing wrong with trying to be the best at what you do. This is an honorable quality in people.

I would love to have a doctor who strives for perfection. I would love to see a film when everything in it is absolutely perfect. To have a chef who knows how to make the perfect meal would be divine.

The logic behind these statements are absurd however because it is impossible to be perfect. As humans, we always have flaws, that is what makes us human.

The problem with the goal of perfection in any project is that it can prevent you from moving forward and actually learning more about what you may have done wrong or right so that you can continue to improve.

Let me give you my latest example.

I was just about ready to give away my film to all my friends so they could see it and then pass it on to their friends. I then came up with the idea of using affiliate marketing to help promote the film. (A future post is in the works highlighting affiliate marketing).

Suddenly, I've created a whole new project that can potentially delay my project for weeks, if not months. There is finding the right affiliate, have the right plan, having all the tools in place, making it easy, making sure the incentives are appropriate, and the list goes on.

The thing is that I came up with a simple solution in one day that will allow me to offer affiliate partnership to my friends. Then I can get feedback and learn more. I can decide what type of affiliate plan might be best, which program is more attractive, which incentives are more effective, etc.

I've decided to compromise between perfection and reality. I'm going to spend one more day making a simple affiliate program available to the friends of my friends without postponing the release of the film.

There is something called the 80/20 rule, otherwise know as the Pareto Principle.

The basic idea at it applies to my situation is that the first 20% of my work that I do towards creating an affiliate program will result in 80% of my income from it. When I try to make it perfect, all that extra work will only result in the remaining 20% of my income.

I've got a lot of other work that needs to be done with this project and at the moment, I'm not making any income. I've got to get the word out about my film and one of the easiest ways is by telling my friends and giving them an incentive to tell their friends. I want to spend time outside of work as well so it only makes sense to budget my time well, make some income and then move on to the next task. If I feel that I need to improve on a particular part of the process, I can always return to it.

So with that said, I'm giving myself a reasonable deadline and goal.

Until then
Happy promotion
Adam
Blind Lyle Films

See the film I'm promoting now for only $3.99 and support my journey. The more success I have, the more I can share!