Do you feel like everything in your life has to be perfect to be successful?

According to the General Social Survey, which has tracked Americans’ moods since 1972…

Women are becoming less happy.

Though there are many variables, I think one big reason we are not as happy is our self-imposed drive to be perfect.

Decades ago, women kept house, reared kids, shopped, and cooked with a myriad of other domestic duties.

Today, women keep house, rear kids, shop, cook, work full-time, run carpools, volunteer at school and church, and, often, do all of this alone. But, instead of women lowering their personal standards and expectations of themselves with the increased demands, they have raised them.

We women tend to think….

Success isn’t getting it done — success is getting it done perfectly.

We feel the pressure to look perfect, have the perfect home, and appear to be the perfect family.

Consequently, we tend to beat ourselves up when things aren’t going well in our relationships, we take things more personally at work, and we swallow more pills to make us feel better.

What’s a girl to do?

Give up on being perfect!

Don’t give up on responsibilities and having realistic standards… just give up on being perfect.

Extend the same mercy to yourself that you give to others — you don’t expect them to be perfect, do you? Of course not.

Have realistic expectations of yourself.

Faith in Christ invites you to renounce perfection because faith lets you receive God’s strength and rest in His opinion of you. God created you.

He is perfect, not you!

So rest today.

God is perfectly in control, perfectly kind, and perfectly wise.

Do your best and God will take care of the rest. You be the you God created and watch His perfect grace carry you.

Once you’ve beaten those statistics, you’ll be a much happier woman!

Question: What actions have you taken to break the chains of perfectionism in your life?