Progress Over Perfection

I’ve become a cliché and I’m laughing at myself about it.

I promised myself I wouldn’t be a part of the “January Exercise Resolution” crowd back when I tried to start exercising again right before the holidays—and then I ended up taking a break. Now look where we are 🤡.

I seriously didn’t plan to start again right now, though. Yes, one of my goals for the New Year was to find a hobby that would ideally involve more physical activity (e.g. tennis, pickleball, etc), but I originally gave myself until the end of Q2 to do so for various reasons. Then I came across a free, 5-day workout challenge beginning the first week in January, hosted by a fitness coach that I’d been following on Instagram for a few months, and I suddenly felt the nudge from Holy Spirit to go ahead and join it.

Honestly, this challenge couldn’t have happened at a less convenient time. There was so much going on the week that it began that every day of it I questioned whether I’d just quit and try again later or actually get it done. One thing you should know about me though—I absolutely HATE quitting, to a fault sometimes (I’ll come back to this in a bit).

Something that’s been coming up for me lately, as I go through this journey of upgrading my life to match what God has always intended (backstory here), is the idea of “progress over perfection.”

The thought process is that it’s better to focus on the actual progress happening rather than getting caught up in doing everything perfectly as you continue whatever you’re working on. In theory, this makes complete sense to me. In actual practice, it’s a concept that hasn’t always been easy to embrace.

While I’ve let go of perfectionism there has, at times, been a level of disappointment that comes with things not turning out the way I hoped they would. This would lead to me completely overlooking the wins along the way, spiraling, and sometimes giving up altogether when deep down I knew I could always try again or at least focus on the good that came out of it all.

With this workout challenge, I wanted to quit from day one. And sometimes, taking a step back (not altogether quitting), is necessary. But in this case, my reasons for wanting to quit were terrible. I felt uncomfortable, I knew my form was off, and it took me 3x longer than the estimated workout time to actually complete the plan we were given on Day 1. All of that led to me being faced with the temptation to beat myself up because I just “wasn’t good at this.”

Perfectionism.

Well, I’m happy to report that I successfully completed the challenge and learned way more about myself in 5 days than I expected to. I learned that I’m stronger than I gave myself credit for. I was reminded that it’s ok to try something out and realize you need more practice, then gave myself grace to try my best and take advantage of the opportunity to ask questions. I learned that I have the capability and discipline already in me to take care of my body—I just needed some support and guidance along the way.

If I had let perfectionism stop me from continuing with this challenge, these things wouldn’t have clicked for me, and I would’ve been right back at square one trying to figure out why I keep hitting this wall.

This is a picture of God’s grace to me.

As I’ve grown and done a lot of healing internally, I’ve come to realize that He celebrates us largely because of our heart, mindset, and obedience to Him and not so much because of the end result of whatever it was we were trying to accomplish (although that has some importance). This has made it so much easier for me to enjoy the process, even if it’s uncomfortable or even frustrating at times, because I better understand His perspective. Thank God for deliverance, LOL.

As I continue this journey and life overall, here’s how I’ve learned to truly focus on the progress with joy and avoid slipping into perfectionism:

1. Celebrate the Small Wins

I made it a habit to intentionally celebrate small wins along the way. I don’t mean just a quick acknowledgment. I’m talking about a genuine moment of rejoicing, even if it’s as simple as telling someone who you know will celebrate with you. This has helped me get out of the habit of subconsciously downplaying things that are seemingly small.

If you’ve been trying to workout like me, celebrate each time you showed up. If you’re trying to learn how to cook, celebrate each time you managed to make a whole meal start to finish. If you’re trying to write a book, celebrate writing a single paragraph today, even if it’s messy—you created something where there was nothing before.

2. Speak Kindly to Yourself

I tell myself consistently that it’s okay to just try your best and see what happens. Literally out loud. Especially if it’s something God has told me to do, I’ve made it a point to focus on making sure the answer is ‘yes’ to “did I obey God?” instead of “did it turn out flawlessly?”

Words have power and it’s important to speak to yourself almost like you would to a child. When my kids are attempting something new, I make it a point to tell them that they just need to focus on trying their best, and then telling them that I’m proud of them regardless. Sometimes you need to tell yourself “I’m proud of you regardless of what happens.” Speak to yourself the way you know God would. And if you don’t know, here are two examples in His word:

"Do not despise these small beginnings, for the Lord rejoices to see the work begin..." — Zechariah 4:10 (NLT)

He REJOICES to see you begin, and to keep going. And when you feel like your best isn't good enough or your 'weakness' is showing, remember this:

"But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is perfected in weakness.” Therefore, I will most gladly boast all the more about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may reside in me." — 2 Corinthians 12:9 (NIV)

The more you continue forward and allow God to do the work in you and through you, regardless of your own ability, the more He is glorified! So instead of saying things like “I feel like I’m getting nowhere” or “I’m failing,” remember God’s perspective and speak that instead.

3. Seek the Root

I began to pay attention to the times when I would start striving for perfection or get frustrated with myself if something didn’t turn out the way I wanted to (even when I tried my absolute best). I try to consistently seek the Lord to figure out the root of those feelings and then heal.

Perfectionism can stem from a few things, but it’s typically a heart issue masked as a strength. Perfectionism is all about finding your worth in your performance, which is a slippery slope because as soon as you inevitably make a mistake, it threatens to destroy how you view yourself and how you think others view you. It also portrays a false version of who you are and can affect your relationships with others because they’re used to a version of you that isn’t authentic and isn’t sustainable.

Trust me when I say this—let go of trying to be perfect and focus on receiving God’s love and grace to accomplish whatever it is He’s asked of you. There’s so much freedom in this—healing makes room for you to actually enjoy trying things out without fear and with confidence.

4. Define Your Progress

I intentionally define how I’m going to measure progress. This is so important because it removes the guessing out of whether you’re truly progressing or not. The key is to be reasonable about how you’ll measure progress, and for it to be based on you and your own actions (because that’s all you can really control).

Example:

• The Perfectionist Goal: "I need to lose 10 pounds this month and do every workout perfectly without stopping." (This is based on results you can't fully control and unrealistic standards).

• The Progress Goal: "I am going to move my body for 20 minutes, 3 times a week. Even if I have to take breaks, finishing is the win." (This is based on obedience and action).

I’d like to think that I won’t end up falling off by February or March like most do. And honestly, who cares? I think we spend too much time worried about what people will think or what others are doing.

You (and I) have permission to keep trying, keep progressing forward, and keep celebrating the milestones along the way, until finally one day it becomes so second nature and you look back with joy at the journey that got your there.

I’m praying for you that your year has begun on a great note, and that you continue to embrace the grace God has available for you as you grow, learn, and become the person He’s called you to be.

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If you want to share what God has been speaking to you about this next season and the new year, I’d love to hear from you! Feel free to email me at giselle@creatinghallelujahs.com or message me on Instagram @creatinghallelujahs. I check those regularly, and everything stays confidential unless you give permission to share.