“The show doesn’t go on because it’s ready; it goes on because it’s 11:30,” said Lorne Michaels, creator of “Saturday Night Live.”
I was thinking about that as I struggled to make the final touches on The Mom Who Took Off On Her Motorcycle. I want it to be as good as it can get but I have reached the point where I feel like I’m just treading in old water.
I begged my friend to give me a deadline to finish the dang thing. “Are you editing it out of existence?” asked my friend Jane. “I took a journalism course with Karl Grossman and he said the magic words that got me to stop doing that. He told us that we were already good writers and that we should go with our first draft. Now there’s a revolutionary thought! No other professor ever said such a thing. But, Grossman is right.”
Sometimes we don’t know when to stop. Sometimes we can rehearse so much that the curtain never rises on the stage. We have to let go of perfectionism and launch.
Are you over-doing something rather than letting it go? Is perfectionism or fear standing in your way? This isn’t only about writing or editing, it’s about living our best chapter. We’re not always ready to do the things we’re supposed to do. But we have to do them.
The show doesn’t go on because it’s ready. It goes on because it’s 11:30.
DIANA BLETTER 
So true, perfectionism is the enemy of action.
Thank you, Stuart! I like that.
Hi Diana,
I’m always over-doing something, rather than letting it go. As much as I’d like to say it’s because I’m a perfectionist…it’s not. It’s that thing one calls fear. Fear of failure or fear of success.
Tracy
Hi Tracy, Thank you for your comment. You are right–trying to make something perfect prevents us from moving on…
I’m like Tracy, only it’s never fear of success…
Another goo reminder of what’s important.
Thanks, Marylin! We can’t let our fear get in the way of completing the work.
Hi Marylin,
Good to see you again, LOL.
You’ll have to teach me how to get over fear of success! 😀
Hi Diana!