而且，许多人长期坚持完美主义，甚至已经成为第二天性。西曼斯基称：“许多成年完美主义者跟我说，他们在大学时经常不能按时上交学期论文，甚至在中学时也无法按时完成家庭作业；成人后，他们又经常耽误工期，而根源都在于追求完美主义的性格。”

    他说：“完美主义者希望把每件事都做得更好，这当然是好事。可问题在于，这么做可能会陷进自我的世界里，而忽略了别人最重视的方面。”

    但不必因此感到气馁。西曼斯基表示：“你说自己在四年内获得了两次升职，这证明在你的完美主义性格中，有对你有益的部分。老板的意思是让你稍微调整一下自己。”

    以下四条建议可助你一臂之力：

    1. 征询他人的意见。首先从老板开始。西曼斯基建议：“有一些项目的最终期限比其他项目更为灵活。应该弄清楚哪些项目难度更大，进度更快，而哪些项目的期限是有‘弹性’的。”

    “不断推进工作的同时，可以向其他人，尤其是老板展示工作的草样。”

    他认为，完美主义者通常不擅长这么做，因为“他们希望其他人看到的是最完美的成品。但实际上，征求别人的建议有极大的帮助，可以避免钻进死胡同，导致耽误工期。只要跟别人说：‘这是我正在进行的工作。你有什么意见？’就是这么简单。”即便一次小小的合作也能让最终产品更加完善。这样的情况已经屡见不鲜。

    2. 设定优先顺序。西曼斯基强调：“完美主义者通常认为所有任务都同等重要。但实际情况并非如此。”

    他在书中详细解释了如何确定哪些项目应该由自己亲自负责，哪些可以放心地交给同事处理。他认为，其中的关键在于“挑选出五个最至关重要的任务，持续跟进。其他的尽管放手交给下属就是了。”其实，这么做并不意味着降低工作标准，而是因为每个人的的时间和精力都是非常有限的。

    3. 让其他人各司其责。西曼斯基注意到，有时，完美主义者做任何事都坚持事必躬亲，原因是“下属不负责任，或者并未努力工作使自己能有突出的表现。这样的问题非常棘手，但如果你的情况确实如此，那你应该与那名下属坐下来谈谈，明确你对他的期望。”

    他认为，不然，如果总是让能力更优秀、效率更高的团队成员替这样的员工收拾烂摊子，只会让他们逐渐厌烦，并且开始寻找出路——最后，团队负责人别无选择，只能自己承担所有工作，而这必然会导致身心疲惫。

    4. 从工作中寻找更多乐趣。没错，就是要找乐子。完美主义者通常会陷入焦虑。大量调查显示，“如果人们不再担心犯错，他们的表现就会更加卓越。”

    西曼斯基建议：“要有意识地从自己的工作中寻找新鲜、有趣的方面。在集中精力达成目标的同时，享受工作的过程，这样就不会过于关注是否会出错。”并且，这会逐渐减少完美主义者的担忧和焦虑，最终帮助他们取得更突出的成就。

    反馈：你是完美主义者吗？或者你的同事中是否有完美主义者？你认为职场中的完美主义到底是优点，还是缺点？欢迎留言评论。

    译者：阿龙/汪皓

    What's more, if you're like most perfectionists, you've been functioning this way for a long time, so it has become second nature. "Adult perfectionists usually tell me that they were often late turning in term papers in college, and even homework in high school, for the same reasons they're missing work deadlines now," Szymanski observes.

    "The desire to keep on making something better and better is terrific, of course," he adds. "The danger is, you can get lost in your own head and forget what's most important to your audience."

    But don't be discouraged. "The fact that you've been promoted twice in four years shows that some parts of your perfectionism are working for you," notes Szymanski. "What your boss is saying is, you need to tweak it a little."

    Here are four ways to start:

    1. Ask for input from others. Begin with your boss. "Some deadlines are more flexible than others. You need to know which ones are hard and fast, and which ones have some 'give' in them," Szymanski says.

    "Then try showing rough drafts of your work to others, especially your boss, as you get nearer to completing it."

    Perfectionists usually struggle with this, he says, because "they want others to see only their very best stuff. But saying to people, 'This is a work in progress. What do you think?' can be enormously helpful in avoiding the tunnel vision that makes you miss deadlines." Who knows, a little collaboration might make the final product even better. It's been known to happen.

    2. Set priorities. "Perfectionists tend to believe that everything is equally important," notes Szymanski. "It isn't."

    His book goes into detail about how to decide what you really need to hold on to and what you can trust colleagues to handle, but the point is to "pick the five most crucial tasks and keep those. Loosen your grip on everything else," he advises. After all, it's less about lowering your standards than it is about acknowledging that you have limited time and energy.

    3. Hold others accountable. Szymanski has noticed that perfectionists sometimes insist on doing everything themselves because "the real issue, which can be uncomfortable to deal with, is that a subordinate is not doing his or her work, or is not making the effort to excel at the job. If that's the case, you need to sit down with that person and make your expectations clear."

    Otherwise, he says, the more capable and productive members of your team will get tired of picking up the slack and start eyeing the exits -- and you'll end up doing all the work, whether you want to or not, a sure road to burnout.

    4. Have more fun. Yes, fun. Perfectionism is often driven by anxiety. Yet voluminous research shows that "people actually perform better when they stop worrying about making a mistake," Szymanski notes.

    "Try consciously looking for what's fresh and intriguing about what you're doing. Enjoying what you do, while you concentrate on reaching a goal, will help you focus less on what could go wrong," he says -- which can, over time, stop feeding the fear and anxiety that keep many perfectionists from reaching their stellar potential.

    Talkback: Are you a perfectionist, or do you work with one? In your view, is perfectionism an advantage at work, or more of a weakness? Leave a comment below.