Desperate perfectionism is on its way to becoming an obsessive-compulsive personality disorder. The development of the disease is usually associated with the fact that society values qualities such as attention to detail, self-discipline, emotional control, reliability, and emphasized politeness — and people get very addicted to meeting all these expectations. That’s when all these perfect qualities turn into a real catastrophe: emotional blocking, dogmatism, and psychological inflexibility.

Perfectionists should worry when they spot the following tendencies:

An unwillingness to dedicate time to yourself in fear of becoming unproductive
Refusing to get rid of unnecessary stuff with the thought, “I might need it one day...”
A pathological fear of making a mistake
The desire to do work for others because of the thought that no one else can do it as qualitatively as you can

It’s difficult for perfectionists to stay in one place because their nature requires immediate action, that’s why psychologists recommend practicing everyday meditation such as listening to music with closed eyes or getting a massage. In order to consolidate success, it is useful to record how many things were done on days without relaxation and on the days when it was there. It will assure a perfectionist that having rest doesn’t prevent them from being productive.

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