Embrace Good Enough … or Less Than Good. Either Way Is Okay Today
February 16, 2024
This essay is the work of a dumb dinobaby. No smart software required.
As humans we want to be the best individual that we can be. We especially think about how to improve ourselves and examine our flaws during the New Year. Sophie McBain from The Guardian evaluated different approaches to life in the article, “The Big Idea: Is Being ‘Good Enough’ Better Than Perfection?” McBain discusses the differences between people who are fine with the “good enough” vs. perfection mentality.
A high school teacher admires a student who built an innovative chair desk. Yep, MSFT Copilot. Good enough.
She uses Internet shopping to explain the differences between the two personality types. Perfectionists aka “maximizers” want to achieve the best of everything. It’s why they search for the perfect item online reading “best of…” lists and product reviews. This group spends hours finding the best items.“Good enough” people aka “satisfiers” review the same information but in lesser amounts and quickly make a decision.
Maximizers do better professionally, but they’re less happy in their personal lives. Satisfiers are happier because they use their time to pursue activities that make them happy. The Internet blasting ideal life styles also contributes to depressive outlooks:
“In his 2022 book, The Good-Enough Life, Avram Alpert argues that personal quests for greatness, and the unequal social systems that fuel these quests, are at the heart of much that is wrong in the world, driving overconsumption and environmental degradation, stark inequalities and increased unhappiness among people who feel locked in endless competition with one another. Instead of scrambling for a handful of places at the top, Alpert believes we’d all be better off dismantling these hierarchies, so that we no longer cultivate our talents to pursue wealth, fame or power, but only to enrich our own lives and those of others.”
McBain finishes her article by encouraging people to examine their life through a “good enough” lens. It’s a kind sentiment to share at the start of a New Year but it also encourages people to settle. If people aren’t happy with their life choice, they should critically evaluate them and tackle solutions. “Good enough” is great for unimportant tasks but “maximizing” potential for a better future is a healthier outlook.
Whitney Grace, February 16, 2024
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