the diminishing returns of perfectionism

When more effort stops helping

There's a point where additional polish doesn't improve your content — it just delays it.

Perfectionism disguises itself as quality. It tells you that one more edit, one more revision, one more pass will make this thing great. But usually, you hit diminishing returns way earlier than you think.

The difference between a post that's 80% there and a post that's 95% there is barely noticeable to your audience. But the difference in time investment? Massive.

I've spent hours getting a hook exactly right, only to have the post perform the same as something I wrote in ten minutes. Because the audience doesn't know how much time you spent. They only know how the content lands.

And here's the counterintuitive part: sometimes the imperfect version is better. The typo you missed can make you seem more human. The slightly rough edit can feel more authentic. The thing you'd normally cut might be the thing that resonates.

Perfectionism also has an opportunity cost. The three hours you spent perfecting one post could have been three posts. More experiments. More learning. More surface area for something to hit.

I'm not saying quality doesn't matter. It always does. But there's a difference between quality and perfection.

Quality is "does this provide value?,” while perfection is "is every single word exactly right?" One of those is worth pursuing. The other is a trap.

The most prolific creators I know have embraced "good enough." Not because they don't care, but because they understand the math. Velocity beats perfection when you're trying to learn what works.

Set a deadline. Honor it. Ship the thing. Learn from the results.

You can always make the next one better. But only if you finish this one first.