Take Pride in Being Deeply Flawed

An acting teacher once told me, "The pursuit of perfection is the pursuit of vanity." As a young storyteller and young person I wanted everything I worked on to be perfect. 

As I get older I realize what really draws people in is your ability to talk openly and honestly about your flaw and failures. It offers people a tremendous sense of solace, but more importantly it builds trust. 

When you seek courage through vulnerability you shine a light on your humanity and people see that if despite all your setbacks you were still able to achieve great things they can too.

That to me is far more inspiring that simply touting how great we are.

Perfection is Overrated

I once heard someone say, "The pursuit of perfection is the pursuit of vanity." Of course, we should all strive to be the best possible versions ourselves, but I've found that our flaws are what make us unique and even compelling.

Drama is the quest to overcome those imperfections manifested in day-to-day struggles, which we all face in some way.

Films are full of "happy accidents." Dustin Hoffman once recounted two in his own storied film career. The scene in, The Graduate when he bangs his head against Mrs. Robinson's bedroom door was a desperate attempt to stop himself from laughing during the scene.

His famous and rarely attributed line, I'm walkin' here! from Midnight Cowboy was said in exasperation as he and Jon Voight were nearly hit by a cab driver after John Schlesinger tried countless times to nail the timing down with the crosswalk lights.

The point is, perfection may be overrated. Striving for greatness is important but so is recognizing the golden moments that can occur when things don't go quite according to plan.