Idealism Mania: Its Causes, Traits, and Remedies

Although the term "ideal personality" sounds intriguing and alluring, it actually refers to a psychological disorder that requires medical attention.

Pursuing perfection, also known as idealism, is one of the biggest problems many people face. It causes them to become weary, unhappy, and plagued with issues, often hindering them from achieving what they want.

The anticipated happiness is not attained through striving for perfection. Instead, it causes psychological disorders like depression, anxiety, and low self-esteem because people who strive for perfection will never be satisfied with what they accomplish. They may become unsatisfied and give up because they think that life is impossible and they will never reach a state of perfection.

What is idealism or perfectionism, and what are its reasons?

People are possessed by this mentality, which drives them to strive for perfection in what they do. That translates into an obsession with completing tasks to the utmost degree possible, sometimes going above and beyond what is necessary, even if it means overworking and endangering themselves.

In psychology, idealism is a broad personality trait evident in a person's intense desire and unwavering pursuit of perfection, devoid of errors and flaws. This desire is accompanied by continuous self-evaluation and self-criticism, as well as worries about other people's opinions of them.

Psychologists make a distinction between the state of obsession with idealism and perfection, which arises from people's desire to present themselves as whole people to others and work out of fear of failing and the embarrassment of blaming others, and the attempt to follow positive behaviours as much as possible to achieve success.

Reasons for Idealism

Psychologists agree that idealism, like perfectionism, is an acquired behaviour, even though they cannot pinpoint the exact cause of idealism or why it manifests in a given individual. Idealists think their worth comes from what they do, other people's "fascination" with them, or the compliments and words of appreciation they receive. That marks the start of slipping into idealism disorder.

What are the ideal personality traits?

This condition is known in psychiatry as "ideal personality disorder." It is characterised by a personality that seeks perfection and accuracy in everything: behaviours, transactions, eating, and clothing. Idealists cannot live simply and constantly feel guilty, careless, and unsatisfied. One of its most significant features is:

1. loss of sense of success

No matter how good the outcome, the ideal person, or perfectionist, lacks a sense of success and achievement and is never content.

2. Failure is a permanent feeling

The ideal person is always overcome with a sense of failure, perceiving all their efforts as unfinished and insufficient.

3. Constant thinking

The ideal person struggles with continual thinking and finds it challenging to unwind, rest, or share their thoughts with others. Their brain never stops thinking.

4. All-or-nothing thinking principle

Idealists have high standards and put a lot of effort into achieving them, which is admirable, but the issue is that even when they attain outstanding outcomes, they are not content. When they do not meet their ambitious career goals, they will not settle for anything less than perfect. They adhere to the idea that "everything or nothing" happens, which means that "achieving something even a little less is a miserable failure" for them.

5. Self-criticism to the point of flogging

The ideal person is an artist in their criticism. When the natural person is proud of their accomplishments, we discover that the idealist forgets their success and concentrates on flaws and gaps. They are consumed with shortcomings and fail to see the big picture, which makes them more critical of themselves and others.

6. Always fearful

The ideal person is driven by fear of failing to reach their goals and any less-than-perfect achievement is viewed as a failure. In contrast, the natural person pursues their goals with passion and desire, enjoying every step of the way.

7. Unrealistic goals

The ideal person sets unrealistic standards and goals that wear them out and make them feel like failures when they hit reality and become frustrated.

8. Outcomes-focused

Ordinary people sometimes enjoy the journey toward their goals more than the final destination. Idealists only see the finished product and do not appreciate the process of getting there because they are too focused on the objective and fear failing.

9. Depression at failure

The ideal person never experiences true happiness. When their goals, which are frequently unrealistic, fail, the ideal person drowns in despair and self-loathing, while the average person accepts failure and gets back up after it.

10. Laziness and postponement

How can the ideal person be lazy regarding their work? This characteristic may seem strange and absurd. However, this trait exists in the ideal person, and the reason is beyond their control, which is their extreme fear of failure. They live in a constant state of anxiety about doing something without being perfect,  which completely paralyses their ability and prevents them from doing anything. Fear of failure or lack of ideal achievement plunges them into laziness and postponement.

11. Low self-esteem

While the ideal person constantly demands perfection for themselves and, as previously mentioned, views any less-than-ideal achievement as a complete failure, a normal person is content with their accomplishments regardless of their imperfections. As a result, the ideal person has low self-esteem and is never satisfied with their results.

12. Paying attention to others' opinions

An idealistic individual is self-obsessed, enjoys receiving constant praise, worries about what other people think of them, and experiences anxiety and terror when they do not obtain the praise they want.

13. Excessively accurate

An ideal person is obsessed with details and completes tasks so precisely that it often takes twice as long as it should, and they even come early to avoid being late.

14. Difficulty making decisions

The perfectionist has a terrible time making decisions because they spend days and nights researching a subject and are obsessed with finding even the tiniest error or gap in their perfectionism.

What is the cure for the mania of striving for idealism?

According to researchers, idealism is a learned behaviour that can be remedied by implementing the following advice:

1. Acknowledge the problem

Acknowledging the problem's existence is the first step toward solving it. So, changing behaviours is much easier than changing a person's nature. To overcome an obsession with perfection, a person must first acknowledge that it exists and view the issue as an undesirable behaviour they wish to change. They must also identify times when they believe their obsession with perfection manifests itself more than at any other time.

2. Wondering “What fuels this mania with idealism?”

An ideal person should ask themselves, “What fuels this idealism? Is it the sensation of fearing something in particular? Or the desire for glory and show-off? Or the sensation of instability and lack of self-confidence? When they realise the real reason behind their mania of idealism, they are better equipped to identify the issue and take appropriate action.

3. Facing the worst eventuality

Through their mania of idealism, one tries to ensure they do not fail, but this method is not the best to stimulate creative thinking. Therefore, one must imagine the worst that can happen to them in a specific situation or field, and then they will discover that it is not catastrophic and can do something to save the case.

4. Define work standards before starting

One must establish the standards by which one's work will be judged before beginning a task or delving into the quest for perfection. Everything doesn't have to be flawless or of the highest calibre. Why burden ourselves with things that don't always need to be perfect when the standards required at work may be low?

5. Attention to self-talk

They need to watch the phrases and words they use when talking to themselves, focusing on whether they support their ideal personality. For instance, they need to instantly swap out phrases like "If I am going to do this, I will do it completely correctly; otherwise, I'm not going to do it.” with something like "I will try to do it as correctly as possible."

6. Set deadlines for delivery

Those give themselves a deadline by which they must turn in the work or do what is expected of them; as a result, they won't have much time to go back and make the necessary changes to achieve perfection.

7. Knowing that a mistake is an opportunity to learn

The ideal person must realise that making mistakes is not the end but a necessary part of learning to overcome their fixation with idealism and perfectionism. Without mistakes, we would not have made many important discoveries in the modern era, as demonstrated by the models of successful individuals who made numerous mistakes before learning from them and ascending to the top.

8. Set realistic, actionable goals

Set realistic, actionable goals and break down large tasks into small steps to feel small achievements first.

9. Being flexible

Being flexible in achieving dreams, that is, not sticking to them literally all the time.

10. dedication to work

While work dedication is commendable, remember that other aspects of life, such as family and one's physical and mental well-being, also require consideration and time.

11. Freedom

Freedom from the notion that mistakes are unacceptable and that making mistakes is normal.

12. Acknowledge that there is a thing as (good enough)

Acknowledge that there is a thing as (good enough), stop looking for perfection in our actions and instead focus on the positive aspects of life.

13. accept imperfect things

Educating oneself to accept imperfect things and the fact that life does not always go as planned and that we frequently have to accept reality as it is.

14. Stop comparing yourself to others.

One must stop comparing oneself to others, which breeds self-doubt and a sense of failure, and start comparing oneself to oneself to overcome idealism.

15. Reduce relationships with neurotic perfectionists

Reduce relationships with neurotic perfectionists and surround ourselves with strong individuals who try to improve themselves constructively and healthily.

In conclusion, settle for excellent rather than perfect

While it's admirable that someone aspires to constant growth and development, it's not a good idea to become so consumed with reaching perfection that one stops progressing. It is unhealthy to be an idealist who is fixated on perfection and constantly tries to reach unattainable goals. You will eventually fail and fall into a vicious cycle of worry, anxiety, and discontent.  

So, it is time to eliminate this pathological mania and learn to content yourself with the “excellent” instead of the “ideal.” If you have done your best to accomplish something, it is enough to feel good about yourself.