The Pursuit Of Perfection

[Calderownz]

"Striving for excellence motivates you; striving for perfection is demoralizing." -Harriet Braiker.

"Nothing that is complete breathes." - Antonio Porchia.

"A man would do nothing if he waited until he could do it so well that no one could find fault." - John Henry Newman.

"To escape criticism - do nothing, say nothing, be nothing." - Elbert Hubbard.

"Better a diamond with a flaw than a pebble without." - Confucius.

Some great minds. Yet, none of them seem to believe in this idea of perfection. What's interesting is that we strive with this pursuit of perfection. We seem to bolster our confidence with the thought of being as close to perfect as possible. You hear people from athletes and car companies, to people within the electronic community claiming they've reached perfection.

So, with all that being said.. here are my questions:

1. What are your thoughts on perfection?

2. Can perfection ever be reached?

3. Any other thoughts would be welcomed.

 

[Blue Chipper]

Perfection is only achievable through imperfection, thus creating a paradox. It's so hard to determine what perfect is, and sometimes what is "perfect" hinders on being a flaw, and thus it is required to have a blemish to achieve perfection. I don't think any human can be scientifically, mentally, physically, physiologically, perfect. It can't be achieved. In part, because you can not define everything on a scale, some things are "perfect" when they're not perfect. So, it is just a paradox.

 

[wrestlingfan]

Being perfect itself could be an imperfection. If you were perfect you would have to cater to everyone's needs and wants, possibly driving you insane.

 

[Cena's Little Helper]

Only young, immature people pursue perfection and base their worth on what they've done relative to someone else. There's absolutely nothing wrong with striving for greatness, but the way you go about attempting to achieve it should never involve besting someone else or being better than someone else.

Furthermore, I'd much rather have someone by my side who isn't deterred by failure than someone who seeks perfection. Who is more likely to break down when they face adversity? Someone who has already accounted for adversity in their plans or someone who will only think about how their perfection has been ruined when the hit even the smallest bump in the road?

 

[WWWYKI777]

Perfection is in the eye of the beholder

Perfection could encompass vanity , or acts/"sin"lessness

Someone could think they have the perfect body & face & clothes , but someone else could think that persons not really attractive at all

Someone could be a saint , but a sinner would think that person is no fun.

On another note the hottest person alive could be an absolutley horrible person. The Saint could be a fugly mofo.

Because there is NOTHING that everyone in the world can agree on , nobody can ever be unanimously perceived as perfect to every person in the world

Dolph Ziggler for one runs around saying he is perfection. I for one thing his hair is attrocious and that he is lacking in promo skills since he has to have Vicky do it for him. So he is then not perfect at least in others eyes just for an example , even if he personally thinks he is

Pursuing to be ones own personal idea of perfect (As long as they don't go overboard with cosmetic surgery) is fine though , but they should accept that not everyone will agree even if they acheive their own perfection

Pursuing "sinlessness" however is a waste of ones life , if you ask me

 

[Brilliant Human Being]

When considering this, the first thing you have to ask yourself is 'What is perfection?' Surely the very idea of perfection changes from person to person, regarding a whole manner of things? For example, the idea of a perfect woman changes from man to man; the idea of a perfect place to relax changes; and so does the perfect holiday. There is no single way to quantify 'perfection' in a very general way that applies to everyone.

For this reason, I believe that everyone has different ideas of perfection, and that should be fairly obvious. So therefore I would argue yes, in some ways perfection can be reached, but on a distinctly personal level and not by the standards of everyone else.

 

[Dagger Dias]

Perfection is an impossible feat. Someone could be really good at doing or creating something, but no matter how hard they try it will never be 100% perfect. Ever. Everything has flaws, even if they are miniscule they are still there. Anyone who thinks they have reached perfection also risk becoming arrogant. Someone who is aware of their flaws tends to be more humble than someone who is anywhere near being perfect. My thoughts on perfection are that it can be a goal to strive for, but one should never let their own "perfections" become a gateway to arrogance towards others that they want to push down. It is better to be aware of one's own flaws than to be perfect because then you can focus more on being a better person rather than just trying to be perfect at something.

 

[ABMorales787]

Perfection would be corruption in a human being. That forces the person to seek envy in order to become superior to their peers and vanity for deeming yourself superior to others. It's a worthless endeavor. We are an evolving breed. You can't stay ahead of the pack forever.

 

[H33LTurn]

Perfection cant be achieved by a human, its simply impossible, at least by textbook definition. Perfection, as well as normality are all perceptions. I had a friend I once thought was perfect. I thought he was healthy and everyone liked him, and I envied that. It wasnt until one day he was attacked by a group of guys who seen him around our neighborhood before that I realized he wasnt all that well liked. Then he confessed to having a rather scary medical condition and thus the perfect image of him was shattered.

Its not right to strive for perfection, because its an unreachable goal. When you set yourself to be the best, you always have to add "the best that you can be" to that statement. All our lives we spend fucking up, in one thing or another. As soon as we remove the ridiculous image of perfection from our minds we can start accepting the unchangeable faults we all have.