Why Perfectionism Is The Root Of Burnout

And how we can help our brains become more cognitively ‘flexible’

Daydreamers is a mental well-being company that’s fighting burnout through creative habits. Get on the waitlist here.

Many of us overachieving types have encountered perfectionism at some point in our lives. And likely, perfectionism for us is like water to a fish: a mindset so pervasive we can barely recognize its impact on our actions.

In the scientific world, ‘perfectionism’ is defined as a personality trait that makes a person strive for flawlessness as their end goal. As you can imagine, flawlessness-as-an-end-goal reeks of psychological, social and emotional issues bubbling under the surface, because it leaves absolutely no room for mistakes or error. We perfectionists seek the Best Possible Outcome, no matter what the cost.

Or, we give up.

This perfectionist belief system isn’t just an individual thing — our society is obsessed with the idea of achieving flawlessness in all areas of our lives. Whether it’s enhancing our bodies to look like smoothing, whitening Instagram filters, or editing our Linkedin timelines to erase any situations that take us off ‘the path’ — our collective vision of success perpetuates this perfectionist cycle.

At Daydreamers, the company I co-founded with my partner Dupi, it’s part of our mission to solve burnout, our addiction to that never-ending hamster wheel of achievement. And when you…