There it was— subtly but unmistakenly taunting me as I stared it down.
I wish I could say it was someone else’s fault, but the truth was that I only had myself to blame. I had misjudged the distance between my bumper and a pole while reversing out of a dark parking lot. It could happen to anyone– a mere tap. Nothing that my car or I should be penalized for.
But when I got out to inspect the damage, I began to sulk. It was minor, maybe an inch long and a quarter inch deep, but nonetheless it was there. An imperfection on my old but otherwise dent-free car.
“Who cares?” I told myself. My 10-year-old Toyota isn’t worth much, and the dent was barely noticeable. Purely an aesthetic issue and a minor one at that.
But still…
As a lifelong perfectionist, the idea of an insignificant blemish, whether on a car on a financial statement, is hard for me to ignore. Intellectually of course, I know that nothing is perfect, and bumps and nicks are part of life.
I rushed to the body shop to get an estimate. The body shop guy smiled as he said, “It should be about $1600.” I sulked again. I knew there was no reason to spend money to fix such a minor blemish that was causing no real harm. But for me, this small dent may as well have been a giant hole in my door. It was tough to take.
As the dent and I stared at each other, I knew I had an important decision to make. Could I live with a tiny imperfection, or would it drive me nuts?
After some deep thought, I eventually concluded that maybe this dent could teach me something.
In business, learning to live with imperfections is not just required, but it’s actually helpful.
Sometimes, I’ve learned this lesson the hard way. Whether it’s losing sleep over a subscription we forgot to cancel or spending too much time trying to write the mythically “perfect” proposal, I’m occasionally guilty of making perfect the enemy of good, and it’s cost us.
It can be difficult to accept that dents are inevitable, whether on your car or your business. But learning how to deal with, and even embracing them as learning opportunities can make a business stronger.
Perfectionism has its upside. It pushes people and companies to be the best they can be. But taking it too far can do more harm than good as you can waste valuable time and money fixing things that don’t really matter.
So, I decided to coexist with my dent and use it as a reminder to focus on the things that matter.
Yes—this hasn’t been easy. Every time the dent catches my eye, I have to resist the temptation to give in and spend the $1600 to get it fixed. But so far so good. My car’s still running just fine, and I’m now a bit more careful in parking lots.
The next time you spot a dent on your car, or your business plan hits a bump in the road, don’t sweat it. Take a breath, laugh it off, and keep moving forward. After all, a few imperfections don’t diminish the journey— and they may even teach you something along the way. JJ Rosen is the founder of Atiba, a custom software development firm and Nashville IT support company. Visit Atiba.com for more info.
