I’m writing this newsletter while sitting in the mall. This week has been busy: I’m selling my house, buying a new one, attending a 2-day conference, working an 8 to 5 job… plus, it’s the end of the school year for my daughter. So, this newsletter is done in between these activities, and it’s far from perfect.

I’m not trying to justify myself. It’s just that I allow myself to do some mediocre work, the bare minimum, and call it a day.

Actually, most of my viral videos are done in 10 minutes or less. They are mediocre compared to what I’m capable of doing, but they still work.

Not everything needs to be perfect. Sometimes, I have two options: either I do the bare minimum, or I don’t do it at all. I choose to do it and move on.

This is something I’ve learned recently, about 2-3 years ago. I was always chasing high quality. My work needed to be great, or it felt lazy and unacceptable.

But that pressure was tiring and scary. I was always doubting myself, stressing… and procrastinating. I didn’t start because I was overthinking and doubting I could make it great.

At some point, I got tired of that. I had a huge list of projects, tasks, and ideas, and I decided to clean up that list.

I gave myself just enough time to do each task and set a hard stop to move to the next one.

I can’t tell you how this change has positively affected my life. For example, I now have more time for my family, and my stress levels have dropped.

Here are 5 things I learned while allowing myself to be mediocre:

1  Done is Better than Perfect

When you give yourself 10 minutes to clean your kitchen, you accept that it won’t be shining perfection ready for a magazine photoshoot. But it becomes much cleaner than if you didn’t clean it at all.

When I said I have 10 minutes to write this newsletter, it might not be the brightest piece of writing, but I still share my experience. It’s raw and real, and it does the job.

The same goes for many work tasks. That email you’ve been writing to your boss to get paid time off for hours could be just a quick Slack message.

It is okay to do the bare minimum because it still gets the job done.

2  Less Pressure

You put too much pressure on yourself to prove to others, and yourself, that you are exceptional and unique. Stop that.

Accept your own flaws. 

You can learn and grow at your own pace. As long as you’re moving forward, you’re in a good place. Sometimes you’ll do a fantastic job, and other times, you just do the best you can in the circumstances.

That’s totally okay.

3  Less Emotionally Invested

The more you perfect your work, the more emotionally invested you are in it. As a result, it’s hard to accept negative feedback about work you’ve been perfecting for ages.

It’s much easier to accept negative feedback when you know it’s not the best thing you could do. This mindset lets you act more freely, without stressing too much about what others will say or think. You become more open-minded, less protective, and more willing to listen and learn.

The key is to distance your emotional self and take the remarks as you would a doctor’s advice to eat less salt.

4  More Open to Getting Help

Not wanting to run extra miles allows you to ask for help and be clear with your requests. When you stop chasing that “exceptionally good employee” label, you realize you’re not the only person working in the company.

If something needs to be done faster or better, the company needs to provide more resources.

Boss: "We need that report for tomorrow."

You: "Well, okay, I can collect the data by tomorrow, but to analyze it, I need help. Or maybe you’re okay with just raw data?"

Boss: "Raw data is okay."

5  Focus on Important Things

You won’t believe how much extra time you get when you start doing the bare minimum. Time that you can invest in things that are really important. You get time to perfect things that move your life and career forward.