“Perfection” by Webster’s Dictionary is defined as the state or quality of being perfect, freedom from fault or defect. Many people believe we should and must strive for perfection in all that we do. If you have ever been deposed for a court case or experienced construction claim defects, you know the plaintiff lawyers will reference codes and standards. They grill you on the smallest inconsistencies to detail and make assumptions and interpretations between the two. Failing to meet the standard is a construction defect. While they will argue that they are not asking you to be perfect, wouldn’t the definition of perfection from Webster’s contradict that very claim?
We tend to use the word “perfection” lightly in life. Consider a perfect game in baseball. A perfect game is when a pitcher does not allow a batter to reach first base—but is this truly perfect? I think we can all agree that perfection is unobtainable. While this can be agreed to, many people feel striving for the pursuit of perfection is a worthy goal. I am not one of those people. If perfection is the goal, failure will happen 100 percent of the time.