Why I Stopped Waiting for 'Perfect' and Started Shipping Projects

I used to spend weeks perfecting small features and tweaking little details in my projects. I thought everything had to be flawless before I could share it with others. But after months of perfectionism, I realized that waiting for "perfect" was actually holding me back.

The Perfectionism Trap

I would obsess over every line of code, every design decision, every single detail. But no matter how hard I tried, there was always something more I could improve. This endless cycle made me feel like I wasn’t accomplishing anything.

The Problem with Perfectionism

It delays progress and prevents you from shipping your projects.
It often leads to frustration, as perfection is a moving target.
It prevents you from learning from feedback or iterating on your work.

The Shift: From Perfection to Shipping

Eventually, I realized that shipping my projects was more important than making them perfect. I learned that perfection is subjective and that sharing something—even if it's not perfect—can lead to valuable feedback and improvement.

The Benefits of Shipping

You get real-world feedback to help improve your work.
It pushes you to finish projects and move on to new ones.
You learn more by taking action rather than waiting for perfection.

The Power of Iteration

I realized that software development is an iterative process. The first version of a project is never going to be perfect, but each iteration brings it closer. By shipping early and often, I can make improvements and add new features over time.

"Perfection is the enemy of progress. The key to success is shipping, learning, and iterating."

How I Overcame Perfectionism

Here are a few strategies I used to break free from the perfectionism trap:

My Approach

Set a deadline and stick to it—no matter how "imperfect" the project feels.
Break projects into smaller, manageable tasks so that progress can be made in smaller increments.
Remind myself that perfection is subjective and that feedback is valuable for growth.

The Impact of Shipping

Once I started shipping projects, I saw a huge improvement in my skills and confidence. I began learning much faster, as I was able to experiment and iterate on real-world feedback. The satisfaction of finishing a project and moving on to the next one was more rewarding than any level of perfection could have been.

For Anyone Struggling with Perfectionism

If you're stuck in the perfectionism trap, I encourage you to take the leap and start shipping your work. Done is better than perfect—and you’ll learn much more along the way.