Why striving for perfection is harming your company
Why striving for perfection is harming your company
Perfection is harming your company. Here’s how your company can succeed by showing its imperfections.
One of the biggest things holding individuals and companies back is trying to be perfect. Too many of us hold out on releasing our ideas, projects and products because they’re not quite right. Caring about quality is admirable, but it’s also a drawback. Every day, over 80 million photos are posted to Instagram, but so many more are withheld because the lighting is off. Or the location isn’t trendy enough. Or it’s the wrong time of day to post that kind of photo. And that extends beyond social media. The fact is, the quest for perfection is harming your brand. So let’s look at how we’re all struggling to find the balance between quality and quantity, and how to be perfectly imperfect.Imperfection is human
You’re on a journey, so show the world
The most engaging content is the most human. It’s why daily vlogging has taken off big time — people love being invited along for the ride. If you’ve got a favourite sports team, I’ll bet you follow their Instagram stories religiously. Seeing what professional athletes get up to day-to-day is fascinating to the average fan. The end result is great, but it’s the journey that makes it worthwhile.Document vs. create
Document, don’t create.Of course, he’s not saying that creating art or products is to be avoided. He means that when you’re speaking to your audience — probably over social media — you can’t afford to be too fancy. You might think you need an expensive camera, lighting and a team of videographers to produce a video, but Gary would say you’re wrong. In a time when social media algorithms favour regular posts more than ever, it’s a good time to start posting ‘imperfect’ content.
3 practical tips to start documenting
Now we know the theory behind the method, let’s get to work. Here are three simple, actionable tips to get you documenting instead of just creating:- Got a dedicated theme to your Instagram feed that you don’t want to spoil? Instagram stories and live streaming are great ways of communicating with your audience, without posting to your feed.
- Hand your social media accounts over to a different member of staff for a day. Promote it as a ‘takeover’ and see how they approach things differently. Maybe you’ve got a great on-camera personality hiding away in the office. Here’s your chance to find them.
- Sit down and be honest when times are tough. Had a major setback with a product launch? Be honest and show your audience that you’re hurting too. Show them you’re human! An unscripted, unedited video gives off integrity that people connect with.