Imperfect Action is Better Than Perfect Inaction
Imperfect action is better than perfect inaction — I think that is how the saying goes. This shows up so often in my life. I’m a perfect example of imperfect action and it’s okay.
I was born and raised in the Catholic Church. If you know anything about that you’d know that “the guilt” is REAL. On another level, and to get right with God, is a succession of steps from confession to communion. That might all sound like gibberish, but it’s just the formality within that faith. What it ends up doing is create a snowball of unimaginable guilt and shame that misses the whole point of our salvation through Christ.
In April of 2022, God called me to attend this other church down the street from our new home (Nonna’s home), so I did. I had spent so many years feeling the guilt of abandoning the local Catholic Church, rather than worshiping in any church. This resulted in many years in inaction in my faith.
Here’s my take away:
- EVERY LITTLE BIT COUNTS.
- Whatever you do, DO IT NONSTOP.
- Do not make the path so hard that you cannot feel like the progress you are making is progress.
The Four Quadrants
I know discussing my faith seems like a departure from wellness, but it is not.
Creating peace of mind and a healthy life entails taking care of your WHOLE life. There are four primary quadrants:
- Your spiritual life
- Your physical life
- Taking care of your finances/mental health
- Taking care of your relationships
Only you can know what that means to you as you assess each of those quadrants. It helps to write down what you want more of in those areas and break it down into small actionable steps to that lead you toward those things.
Examples of Imperfect Action vs. Perfect Inaction
Literally today I got my stitches out from a skin cancer they found and removed surgically. Addressing my physical quadrant regarding my skin and an abnormal mole I found started eight months ago. I had to schedule an appointment with my general doctor who referred me to the dermatologist who shaved the mole off my back to send to the lab who called me when it came back as a melanoma. That required a pre-op with a surgeon who then scheduled surgery to have it removed and cut into my lymph nodes to have them checked. All clear 🙏🏻!!
However, my relationship with the sun and sun exposure is forever changed! And, if I’m REALLY honest, every time I forgot sunscreen or felt uneasy about my freckles, I put stress on my physical health in the form of worry—all because of inaction. I could go into more detail on that, but I want to give you a few more examples of imperfect action.
Another example involves a friend wanted to improve his relationship with his wife. After overwhelming himself with these ideas of grandiose actions, he scaled it back to making her avocado toast in the morning. She loves it. He’s been consistent and this simple act has helped their relationship dramatically.
Here is my last example…
Say you drink a 150 calorie drink every day and this drink costs you $5.00 each time. Eliminating that one little drink would eliminate an additional 54,750 calories per year resulting in the reduction of 15 pounds. Furthermore, it would save you $1,825 in that same year! That’s a great bulk of money that you can apply to other, more meaningful goals in your life.
It might not be your 1,000 calories deficit plan that would rapidly accelerate your weight loss goal, but it would be a measurable result and it would be progress.
Reach out if you want to start to identify those goals and get into our accountability group to take steps to move at any pace you want toward them!
