Pancakes and Perfectionism

When you’re a high achiever, held to a high standard by yourself and others, there’s a sneaky danger in being good at what you do.

Here’s an example.

I built a from-scratch positioning statement for a new client.

This is something I do all the time, and between my experience and the wealth of input I draw from, I’m usually pretty good at it.

When she saw the first draft, she was…underwhelmed.

And that hit me like a ton of bricks.

I’d gotten used to client feedback like, “I like it except for this word,” or “this line doesn’t sound right.”

This feedback was more along the lines of, “We need to start over.” It triggered an attack of impostor syndrome.

Somewhere along the line, I had internalized this idea I was always supposed to hit the mark, even on the first attempt.

A low voice in the back of my mind whispered, Aren’t first drafts SUPPOSED to miss the mark?

Wait…breathe.

That’s right. They are. This is OK.

That’s why they’re first drafts. They’re a testing ground to get everyone on the same page.

They’re not supposed to be ready to go out of the box.

My friend Kelsey Gilbert-Kreiling says they’re like making pancakes.

The first pancake in a batch almost never comes out. It’s the test to find out if the pan’s the right temperature, if you have enough butter on the griddle, and if your batter’s the right consistency.

She calls it the sacrificial pancake.

The first iteration of everything is pretty much like that.

A piece of writing.

A positioning statement.

A coaching program.

A course curriculum.

A website.

The danger in being good at what you do is sometimes, your first try does come out great.

And when that happens a few times in a row, you start thinking that’s how it should be—every time.

But it’s not. Most of the time, your first attempt will be a sacrificial pancake.

The client and I talked through the draft. It gave us a valuable starting point for a clear articulation of what she was looking for and what we needed to convey.

Draft 2? That feedback was more along the lines of "not this word" and "let's work on this line."

When was the last time your first try missed the mark? Did you let it stop you, or are you willing to sacrifice that pancake and try again?