We will show you some selected tools and ideas which may be helpful in striving for excellence in this article:

• Restrict the amount of time you engage in perfectionistically driven activities. Purposefully cut back in those areas that you know you devote large amounts of time to but where your performance does not seem to improve. There is a delicate balance between the commitment of time and energy needed to excel versus being compulsively overcommitted.

  At a certain point, striving becomes self-defeating because it is possible to try too hard. You may spend too much time doing and redoing to get things perfect. Research on leadership suggests that a moderate amount of motivation (leading to moderate time investment) tends to be related to best performance.

• Always break large goals down into smaller subgoals. As with end goals, try and put subgoals into objective, measurable terms. In this way, you can give yourself nourishment along the way toward your end goal. Breaking end goals into subgoals will also tend to reinforce enjoying the process of reaching your end goal.

  For example, if your goal is to learn how to understand Level II quotes, subgoals might be to understand the flow of quotes in relation to the bid and ask prices; who the main market makers are and how they tend to behave; how to use time and sales information; how to predict the movement of the stock from the imbalance of orders to buy and sell; and how to put in bids that are between the quoted prices.

  In determining subgoals, be careful not to set them at too high a level, or you will defeat the purpose of periodic self-nourishment. If you set the subgoals too low, you will not feel worthy of enjoying any satisfaction when the subgoal is met.

• Break the habit of being critical. Refrain from criticizing others’ performance, no matter how much you feel the desire to comment on their inadequacies and shortcomings. If you can break the habit of being critical of others, you will also tend to be less critical of yourself. You will begin to see that it is not necessary to continually compare yourself to others. This is not easy to do, since there is continual cultural reinforcement for playing this comparing game.
• Try journal writing to help you along the path of accomplishment. Write about those projects and activities that matter to you, and compliment yourself when you reach subgoals and end goals. Let your journal be a record of your successes, so that you may return to it for support whenever you tackle a challenge that seems too big to handle. Reading about your successes will help give you the confidence to tackle larger and riskier projects. Use your well-practiced compulsivity in a positive way to ensure that you make entries in your journal regularly.
• Keep company with people who support your projects. It will be much easier for you to reach your goal of excellence if you have others who value excellence in their own lives and who are willing and able to help support your efforts. Refrain from spending too much time around heavily critical people who are unable to appreciate your desire for excellence or who put you down out of their own envy, feelings of inadequacy, and perfectionism.
• Keep in mind the final determination of excellence is up to you. The goal of excellence is not a matter of the outside world giving you approval or applause. While it is desirable and gratifying to receive approval and recognition from others, the real gratification comes only when you have accepted yourself at a deep enough level that you can view your own projects and very existence in this world as good enough. The ultimate judge, jury, and trial reside within.

  There is no substitute for learning to love and accept yourself. All of the glitter from exciting market gains and recognition in the world cannot make you feel good enough if you are unwilling or unable to give to yourself what only you have the power to give. Without this acceptance you will always feel like more is never enough.

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