Do you watch some of those home renovation shows? The ones where the house is clearly outdated and when the whole reno is done the place looks like a showpiece with lots of high-end finishes? Sure we would all like to live in a spa or celebrity's home, but the question I've been contemplating lately is if the high end finishes are the best use of the budget or not. I'm not talking about trading the high end finishes for the cheapest stuff you can find, but about choosing a quality product that isn't on par with the cost of a rare wine. Why? to maximize the number of good improvements you can make with the resources you have. I mean, would you rather have one perfect bathroom, or a very livable, updated home? I'd choose the home every time.
We've talked before about the struggle with perfection, and with the example I've used here (warning: lots of other fun examples and metaphors ahead), it's easy to understand the appeal of perfection: that high end bath is really awesome. But the perfection of that bathroom can't fix or address the fact that the rest of the house is outdated and less-than-functional. And backing up and looking at the bigger picture: is the perfection of your website or your office desk or your recipe or your tucked-in bedspread or your tidy kitchen or your homework or your workout really worth the extra minutes/hours/days it takes to get there if you can even get there?
With the world having been one question mark after another over the last few years, does it make sense to aim for perfection? Or does it make sense to do a really good quality job, something you can be proud of and still have enough resources for the other needs in your life? Of course we all want to be able to have, do and be everything without making sacrifices, but as I was reminded in a sermon recently, most of the time in our victory journeys we need to choose what side effects we want to come along with the stuff we really want. For example: if you want to be able to complete a triathlon, you have to do the hard, sweaty, time consuming work. If you want to lose weight you have to commit to a diet program. If you want to have a successful, lasting relationship, you have to give to the relationship, not just take. I haven't met too many people who were dissatisfied because they decided to remodel the whole house rather than just create a 10 star bathroom.
So as you work on your victory journey this week I encourage you to think about what you're gaining and what you're opening up to with each big decision you're making and think about if it's really a decision that will be the best for both the long and short term progress and ultimate success of your victory. A completed victory that builds a foundation for bigger and better victories for the future is better than one that's so perfect you'll never be able to do better than what you did this time.
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