Harvey Mackay: Never apologize for doing your best

The great Greek sculptor Phidias had high standards when he was carving the statue of Athena for the Parthenon about 2,400 years ago.

According to an old story, he was busy chiseling the strands of her hair on the back of her head when an onlooker commented, "That figure is to stand 100 feet high, with its back to a wall. Who will ever know what details you are putting behind there?"

Phidias replied, "I will."

Perfectionism or a waste of time? I vote for doing the best you can at every opportunity, regardless of your line of work.

Perhaps because works of art often outlast the artist's life span, such creators are more inclined to strive for utter perfection. When Frederic Auguste Bartholdi completed the Statue of Liberty in the late 1800s, there were no airplanes or helicopters to inspect its detail from the air.

Yet many years later, when helicopters hover close overhead, it is clearly evident that the sculptor meticulously finished every detail of Lady Liberty's coiffure and crown without "cheating" in any area that could not be seen from the ground.

Clearly, Bartholdi was a perfectionist. He wanted to create a thing of beauty that was perfect from every point of view and over any period of time. He did his absolute best because he could. That's a good principle to follow when creating anything of lasting value.

• Be realistic. When you find yourself becoming frantic about a goal, stop and ask, "Is this goal really worth all the frustration I'm experiencing?" You cannot do your best work when you are preoccupied with worry.

• Establish clear expectations. If you know what's expected of you, you can better track your progress and draw boundaries when needed. Then you can move forward with the project instead of trying to alter it just for appearance's sake.

• Identify your triggers. Learn to recognize the factors that lead or contribute to your perfectionist thinking and behaviors, and avoid them. That does not mean you give any less than your best; just be aware that you can undermine a terrific outcome by ­nitpicking minor details.

• Delegate. Many perfectionists mistakenly believe that they, and only they, can complete the task at hand. Allow other people to assist you, which will improve the odds that a group will more easily reach excellence.

• Know what's important. Consult with friends, colleagues and your boss about the most crucial points of the project at hand. Analyzing your objectives, then narrowing down key points and agreements, allows everyone to measure his or her performance accurately.

Mackay's Moral: Never apologize for doing your best.