Ep 14: Layout a Day – The Podcast: The Impatient Perfectionist

by Lain Ehmann on September 1, 2011

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In this week’s podcast we talk procrastination! (No surprise the podcast is a day late… hahaha!) Inside this amazing 20-ish minutes of tantalizing audio, you will discover:

  • What’s keeping me up at night
  • Why I always start my pages with the title and journaling
  • The bad habit I’ve been fighting for years… and
  • All about Spawn of True Scrap!

So take a listen. It’ll be some of the most scrappy fun you have this week — or double your money back!

P.S. Like what you hear? Of course you do! Pop over to iTunes and leave me some review love! And while you’re there, subscribe to get Layout a Day: The Podcast delivered right to your computer!

 
  • Mikki McGehee

    I try very hard to complete my layouts in 1 sitting because, as you mentioned, if I set it aside then it sits there forever. I find if I have journaling to do that, I need to do it as I’m completing my layout or it’s not going to happen. Another place I fall short is if I am doing something out of the ordinary, if I need a size photo that I don’t typically use or a technique that requires a bit more time then I’m more apt to procrastinate the finished product.

  • a1983alaskan

    I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard the words, read the words,  said the words: “Accept imperfection”, but it just ain’t happenin’ for me! When I’m working on a layout, it’s going to get completed–even if it takes me two days to finish.  It WILL be done top to bottom–photos, papers, embellishments, AND journalling.  My problem with perfectionism is just getting started.  I will sit for days, weeks, months talking myself into getting busy with my scrapping.  I mull the perspective layout over in my brain—over and over and over and over.  I’ll do some heavy talking to  myself about “just pull out that photo and get to it!”  But, because it HAS to be perfect in my brain before I even begin, just getting started is a MAJOR hurdle.  Does this make any sense at all?

  • Anonymous

    That’s exactly what happens with me – I put it off if I don’t have the stuff right there and readY!

  • http://www.creatingforcauses.org Shackney

    Words from my dear hubby: Better good enough today than perfect someday.

    Sorry, that’s just not me! Well, it’s starting to be. Why? because I’ve finally accepted that sometimes good enough is, good enough. 

    How did I reach this point? Probably because I just turned another day older and I realize how much I am NOT getting done because I don’t want to do things unless I have the perfect amount of time, the perfect resources and I feel I can do it perfectly. Well, when is that ever going to happen? Rarely, that’s when.

    I know I will struggle with this from time to time, but I’m starting to see the light…the light of good enough.

  • Anonymous

    As a card maker, the one thing I am super guilty of is making a card, but not putting any inside paper (with or without a verse) in it.  I’m so bad, that I spent 3 hours yesterday just doing that before I ran out of paper.  I picked up some more paper today, so the rest of my Christmas cards will have insides.  I am beyond thankful for my hubby, who doesn’t let me procrastinate too much.   He’s a neat freak, I’m ADHD, messy and disorganized:)  We do have a nice compromise though: I make sure everything is put away at the end of the day, and he usually doesn’t complain too much if it’s not perfectly organized.

  • Anonymous

    It is definitely an ongoing process! Sometimes I have to intentionally let things be “not perfect” even if I have the time/inclination to fix them. I want to remind myself that I can make mistakes and not fix them and LIFE WILL GO ON! It’s like immersion therapy… ;)

  • Anonymous

    I’m pretty impressed you’re working on your Christmas cards already… :)

  • LCSmithSAVED

    I may have mentioned this before, but those layouts that just don’t seem “done” to me get put in a slideshow on my desktop at work. As they roll by over & over I usually decide sooner or later what they “need” and can finish them & move on. They are not in a physical pile but definitely a mental one…I think that is the hardest thing about being a perfectionist/procrastinator – I tend to lead a very rich internal life that sometimes leaves me disinterested or exhausted (!) about producing in real life, lol. Good to know yourself and act accordingly… (great website is FlyLady)

  • Anonymous

    That is a great way to keep them front-and-center without having them all sitting on your desk! Love it! :)

  • Anderson

    I grew up with, “A job worth doing, is worth doing well.”  The key word is “well,” but I keep trying to make it perfect. I have to remind myself of the following: “The pursuit of excellence is gratifying and healthy; the pursuit of perfection is frustrating neurotic, and a terrible waste of time.”  Don’t know who originally said it, but how true!

  • Anonymous

    …And don’t forget, “Done” is better than perfect! :)

  • Michele in La

    this was *SO* thought provoking….  how do you know what is in our heads so much? 

    the mental drain you talk about with things sitting around waiting for attention – that is so me…  so much so that I don’t have layouts hanging around 1/2 done, they are still in my head :(

    and such a procrastinating perfectionist, i don’t even get started

    am inspired to (once again) clear some “clutter” and reward myself w/ fun stuff, and then repeat…. 

    will definitely bookmark this one :)

  • Anonymous

    So glad you liked it! :)

  • amyptucson

    I KNOW it’s not about having the time, because I was laid off from my job and have had nothing BUT time for 18 months, yet I really haven’t gotten any farther with my pages than I would have if I were working.

    I like your 80% done rule. Imma try that!

  • amyptucson

    What a great idea!!!

  • Anonymous

    There’s that “law” about work expanding to fit the time allotted… SO TRUE!

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