A short letter to all my perfectionistic friends and colleagues

To all my perfectionistic friends and colleagues,

I often come across Doctors, Registrars and Medical Students who are perfectionistic in nature and that is not necessarily a problem. In actual fact, I think it's a great thing!  Doctors should have high standards.

However, my statement comes with a few conditions.........

1. A perfectionist who is self critical and fear failure can be extremely self destructive.
2. A perfectionist who is self critical, fear failure but have lots of skills will get away with it until the day when they are faced with a situation where they do not have the skills eg in parenting and relationships.
3. A perfectionist who is self compassionate, self reflective but not self critical, and who understands that failures and mistakes are pathways to success will go a long way.

So if you are a perfectionist, please celebrate it, be kind to yourself and embrace your failures just like when you play a game like Angry Birds.  If you are good at it, then I know that you have made at least a few mistakes along the way.

I wish you all the very best.

Kind regards,
Dr Vin

(PS Please pass this on to other fellow perfectionists if you find the above helpful and thank you for spreading the word.)