Table Of ContentHow to Be an Imperfectionist
The New Way to Self-Acceptance, Fearless Living, and Freedom from
Perfectionism
By Stephen Guise
Blog
http://deepexistence.com
Book site
http://imperfectionistbook.com
Copyright
How to Be an Imperfectionist by Stephen Guise
Copyright © 2015 Selective Entertainment, LLC, All Rights Reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form, except for brief quotations, without written permission
from the author.
Legal Disclaimer
The information contained in this book is the opinion of the author and is based on the author's personal
experiences and observations. The author does not assume any liability whatsoever for the use of or
inability to use any or all information contained in this book, and accepts no responsibility for any loss or
damages of any kind that may be incurred by the reader as a result of actions arising from the use of
information found in this book. Use this information at your own risk.
The author reserves the right to make any changes he deems necessary to future versions of the publication
to ensure its accuracy.
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Mini Habits
If you haven’t yet, I strongly recommend reading my first book, Mini Habits.
While it’s not imperative to read Mini Habits to benefit from this book, there is a
definite synergy between them. If you read Mini Habits, you’ll understand why
these imperfectionist solutions are in mini habit form.
Based on the science, Mini Habits is arguably the most effective habit formation
strategy in the world; and based on reviews, it’s arguably the most loved. People
can’t help but talk about the strategy that’s changed their life!
Mini Habits Book: http://amazon.com/dp/B00HGKNBDK
Mini Habit Mastery
If you prefer video and want to learn the mini habits concept, you can take the
Mini Habit Mastery Video Course. It retails for $149, but you can use coupon
code “imperfectionist” to get it for just $59 (that’s $90 off!). The book and the
course are leaders in ratings and satisfaction (the course is rated 5 stars from 40+
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Mini Habit Mastery HD Video Course: http://udemy.com/mini-habit-mastery/?
couponCode=imperfectionist
Table of Contents
Front Matter
Title Page
Copyright
More From Stephen
Book Content
– Preface
1. Introduction
2. The Perfectionist Mind
3. The Poison of Perfectionism
4. The Freedom of Imperfectionism
5. Unrealistic Expectations
6. Rumination
7. Need for Approval
8. Concern over Mistakes
9. Doubts about Actions
10. Application Guide
End Matter
There’s More!
Thank You and Contact
Preface
“Strive for continuous improvement, instead of perfection.”
~ Kim Collins
Perfectionism (noun): “A disposition to regard anything short of perfection
1
as unacceptable”
Having perfectionistic tendencies myself, I know how destructive and frustrating
this mindset can be. In this book, I want to make a case that not only compels
you but also shows you how to embrace imperfection in your life. Imperfection
isn’t bad, it’s freedom. (To be clear, “perfection” isn’t bad either—by definition,
it’s flawless—but perfectionism is problematic.)
Perfectionism makes you stay home, not take chances, and procrastinate on
projects; it makes you think your life is worse than it is; it keeps you from being
yourself; it stresses you out; it tells you that good is bad; and it ignores the
natural way in which things work.
We’re going to discuss strategies that can help us to become imperfectionists.
Before we get into this book, there are some things about my first book that will
be relevant to our journey into imperfectionism.
The Power of Mini Habits
Mini Habits: Smaller Habits, Bigger Results is about a strategy for lasting
habitual change. As a result of the strategy’s effectiveness, Mini Habits has been
a great success both commercially and in the lives of the people who implement
the strategy. After selling more than 45,000 copies in its first year in the United
States, it is being translated into more than a dozen languages worldwide.
The premise of Mini Habits was ridiculous: force yourself to do (seemingly) too-
small-to-matter positive behaviors, but ones you can do every day, even on your
worst day. Keep this in mind as I refer to mini habits throughout this book: a
mini habit is a too-small-to-fail behavior you do every day.
Daily mini habit examples: write one line of code, read two pages in a book,
write 50 words, call one lead (sales), email one person (networking), or process
one piece of mail. The list goes on at minihabits.com/minihabit-ideas, but the
concept is the same—choose an activity you can’t possibly fail to do, and do it
until it becomes a habit and grows into something bigger. There is no ceiling on
mini habits, as your one push-up goal can turn into 50 push-ups on any given
day. The small goal only ensures that you start.
My Exciting Results with Mini Habits
As I write this more than two years after doing that first single push-up, I want to
share how my results have continued to get better over time with mini habits.
After six months of doing one push-up (or more) per day, my resistance to
exercising had decreased. I was then able to go to the gym three days a week;
three months later, I went to the gym four days a week; two months after that, I
was going five days a week. At first, these were requirements I needed to meet. I
still exercise three to five days a week because I want to do it, and it’s often for
an hour or more. Exercise is like eating dinner: I may end up skipping it once in
a while for unforeseen reasons, such as illness or injury, but if I can do it, I won’t
skip it. I’m in the best shape of my life, and I’m getting stronger.
On the heels of my exercising mini habit’s success, I began mini habits of
reading two pages of a book and writing 50 words a day. More than a year later,
I haven’t raised the targets on these because it isn’t necessary. I still read and
write every day. The amount varies, but the results have been consistently
greater than expected, which I’ve seen is common with mini habits. Small,
consistent, incremental steps in a healthy direction bring big results.
There’s been an exciting spillover effect into my psyche. I have more confidence
in social situations, both from the above life improvements and by learning to
take small steps to move ahead in any situation that scares me. Even as a natural-
born introvert who is capable of hibernating for long periods, and someone who
does not excel at small talk (I’m an INTP for those familiar with Myers-Briggs
personality profiling), I’ve gone from shy to social.
My comfort zone is constantly expanding in multiple areas. I’m more
comfortable with (and more willing to do) what matters most to me: exercising,
eating healthy food, writing, reading, and socializing. Before and after photos
are great at capturing weight loss, but no photo can capture the many internal
shifts that take place when you practice mini habits for a year or two. And unlike
21-or 30-day programs, these are permanent lifestyle changes. This has all
happened over a period of two years without a slip-up.
I’ve made more personal progress in the last couple of years than in the 10
before them. It’s because mini habits work on so many levels to move life
forward, and they rarely fail those who try them out.
This book has numerous ties to Mini Habits, but the focus is not directly on
forming habits. The focus of How to Be an Imperfectionist is on specific
solutions to the widespread problem of perfectionism.
