INTHEBLACK June 2022 - Magazine - Page 61
“Perfectionists were found to be excessively negative,
aggressively competitive and often preoccupied with
work and personal achievement goals that might
potentially compromise their interpersonal relations,”
says Ocampo.
When a workplace is taken over by perfectionism,
many things start to slide, and the signs are often visible
in plain sight, says Scott Stein, leadership specialist and
author of Leadership Hacks.
“I have seen this too often, when staff start to hide
their mistakes for fear of being criticised by
perfectionistic managers – which can lead to missed
deadlines, a lack of cooperation and, for some staff,
a feeling of being isolated.”
Dealing with a manager who demands perfection
can be exhausting, and relationships start to fray at
the edges.
“After a while, the constant criticism and lack of
support will lead to decreased morale. When this
occurs, employee productivity goes into freefall as
people start to make excuses for mistakes and worry
about protecting themselves rather than achieving
goals,” Stein says.
Perfectionism poisons relationships in other ways, as
individuals become unwilling to delegate for fear that
the work will not be perfect.
“When this is a manager, rather than creating a
supportive and cooperative culture, unfortunately they
limit employees’ opportunities to learn and grow to the
next level,” says Stein.
PRESSURE TO PERFORM
One of the consequences of globalisation and increased
competition has seen organisations adopt a resultsfocused approach to performance, marked by extreme
attention to detail, intolerance of mistakes and punitive
evaluations, says Ocampo.
“Consequently, leaders must drive employees to
achieve exceedingly high performance standards to
remain effective and competitive in today’s workforce,”
she says.
The toll this takes on individuals, teams and whole
organisations can become endemic.
Clare Mann, psychologist and communications trainer,
says, “Constantly striving for perfectionism in an
organisation with multiple deliverables can cause
individuals enormous stress, and they will work long
hours – often at home – to compensate, which also
causes difficulties in their personal lives.”
While organisations obviously want to attract
employees who are dedicated and engaged in their
work, when perfectionism takes over, it can lead to
staff being over stressed and quickly burning out.
“I have seen this too often, when staff
start to hide their mistakes for fear of
being criticised by perfectionistic
managers – which can lead to missed
deadlines, a lack of cooperation and, for
some staff, a feeling of being isolated.”
SCOTT STEIN, LEADERSHIP SPECIALIST AND AUTHOR
ANTIDOTE TO ANXIETY
Before the relentless drive for perfectionism begins to
have crippling effects on a team’s performance, leaders
need to reset. Stein says managers should aim to develop
a supportive culture that allows for more innovation and
collaborative ways to get things done, often taking less time.
Associate Professor Narelle Lemon from the
Swinburne University of Technology says when
identifying people displaying perfectionist behaviour,
“managers should be really careful not to use
perfectionism against people or promote it as a badge of
honour, as both perspectives cause issues of their own”.
Mann advises managers to open up the discussion
and give people who display perfectionist tendencies
opportunities to receive feedback and share their own
perspective.
“Some may be totally unaware of their perfectionist
behaviour, or disagree that they are a perfectionist.
“The more they are aware of their perfectionism or try
to hide it, the more they may defend themselves and say
‘it is just this project’,” says Mann.
Although an employee may offer to change their
approach, instead, they may carry on working like this
at home. “A manager therefore needs to keep a close
eye on tell-tale signs of fatigue or stress that might
indicate this,” says Mann.
Setting clear guidelines about work time limits is key
for all staff. A smart leader will bring humanity into the
workplace by showing their own vulnerability – such as
revealing that they have missed deadlines sometimes.
Unfortunately, not many managers are willing to do this.
Lemon points out that steering employees towards
“good enough” or aiming for best practice helps to
create a supportive environment that allows staff to be
willing to ask for help and be engaged at the same time.
“If we can scaffold opportunities to fail, try, experiment
and learn, we all grow individually and collectively. This
requires courage from all of us, but in the process we
develop confidence and learn so much about ourselves,
the work we do and the vision we share in workplaces.
This learning brings a joy that interrupts the dominance
of perfectionism,” says Lemon.
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