#5 Practice doesn't make perfect

Just Do It. Inspirational. Brilliant simplicity. But I always think it's missing something...

Just Do It... with purpose

In other words, it’s what you do and the way you do it that matter. Because there's this persistent untruth we peddle... practice makes perfect.

I mean, it's a lot more positive than saying, “you'll never be perfect, so why bother trying,” but chasing perfection isn’t always a great idea either. Especially if you struggle to deal with disappointment.

Just ask a copywriter, golfer or yogi. Actually, I think it’s just me and Dave Harland who do all three*. Anyways, anyone with years of scribing, scoring or stretching will tell you that practice and craft are fundamentals. But perfection is as elusive as copy that doesn't need editing. Or a hole-in-one on a par 5. Or a handstand without tipping over.

Golf? Yoga? Copy? “Why?” I hear you ask... well, I write copy to fund the golf habit. I play golf to clear my “work” head. And I practice yoga to keep my body from falling apart while doing the other two. Apart from good things coming in 3s (see you at the 18th hole later), my point is that practice doesn’t make perfect, it becomes progress. Eventually.

Let me explain...

Copywriting: make the best of a messy business

Writing copy is like trying to assemble IKEA furniture without instructions, in the dark, after four pints and a spliff. The process is messy and farraginous (a posh word for fucked up). You get parts mixed up, do stuff in the wrong order and everything starts to look wrong. And you keep getting distracted and finding yourself at the fridge. Plus, there’s a lot of sitting and screentime – which are no good for mind, body and spirit.

Copywriting practice takes different forms. For example, I read fiction and non-fiction (occupational hazard) because each line is invisible practice, depositing little nuggets of style and substance that might surface in work later. Each rejected headline and binned concept is another rep, building muscle memory for the craft.

But perfect copy? Doesn't exist. It certainly isn’t a linear process. There's always another edit, another tweak, another way to phrase it. What exists is deadline copy. Copy that ships. Copy that does the job well enough until the next brief arrives.

And I’ve learnt this more acutely in four years of freelancing than in 30 years of employment. Now I’m painfully aware that perfectionists are professional timewasters. Not even “Just Do It.” is perfect, because nothing’s ever done, done.

Yoga: find your imperfect edge

Yoga requires daily practice. Getting on your mat. Making time for yourself. Finding form, discipline, but mostly discovering what works for you. No two bodies are the same, which yoga teachers mention while demonstrating a pose that makes them look like human origami while you resemble a partially collapsed deckchair.

It's about tuning into what your body needs and letting go of what it doesn't. And unlike golf or copywriting, yoga encourages you to abandon perfection. "It's a practice, not a perfect," is worth remembering when you’re wobbling around in tree pose.

The practice itself is the point. Not some imaginary end state where you've finally mastered down dog. The small wins add up. Like getting on the mat on days when your hamstrings feel like steel cables and your back’s as stiff as a surfboard.

Golf: feel the imperfection

Playing golf is all about practice. Believe me, it's just too stressful if you don't because your brain will invariably go, I don’t know how to do this. Then you start overthinking. Game over.

Practice prepares you for the unexpected. It builds confidence. But you can also practice the wrong things. Hitting 100 balls at the range means nothing if you're reinforcing the same flaws. Be purposeful with practice and it will play out on the course. Lack purpose and you'll wonder why you bothered some days.

Especially putting. Always the putting and short game before smashing a driver off the tee – a hugely overrated activity. Nothing will save strokes faster than a solid 5-foot putt. Yet we gravitate to the big stick, chasing distance over precision, because it feels better to send one soaring 250 yards (even in the wrong direction) than to roll a ball 10 feet into a cup.

Habits add up to progress

What connects my three obsessions is the value of positive habits around each. It's not about massive leaps, but tiny improvements, consistently applied. That's what James Clear calls Atomic Habits. And while he’s a big believer in just doing it, that comes with an acute understanding that the smallest, most purposeful habits compound over time:

• 20 minutes of deliberate putting practice beats an hour of aimless whacking

• 15 minutes of daily writing outperforms the occasional eight-hour marathon

• 10 minutes of stretching is superior to sporadic yoga classes

Consistency beats intensity. Process creates progress.

Three is the magic combo

Here’s how the Rule of Three works for me. I write copy to play golf, play golf to write better, and practice yoga to keep doing the other two.

I’m fine with knowing that none will ever reach perfection. My golf swing will always have its quirks (the weird ankle roll thing). My copy will always need one more edit ("The first draft of anything is shit” – Ernest Hemingway). And my handstand will always need the support of a wall (though the headstand’s pretty solid).

But perfection isn't the point. Improving at anything is often three steps forward and two steps back. Which is how I walk off the 18th green after yet another 5 (it's a par 3 and never an easy finish).

So, yeah, just do it. But be purposeful in whatever you practice. Because that’s the path to progress. Which, unlike perfection, is actually attainable for you and me, whether it’s on the tee, on the mat, at the desk or somewhere else entirely... like LinkedIn.

* I might have got that wrong about Dave Harland. Come to think of it, his mum did say only the other day that his "little arms" weren't ideal for golf. Which I imagine hampers his yoga too. But he’s definitely into copywriting and nobody’s perfect.