PROGRESS OVER PERFECTION

B Y A L E X A N D R I N A

Living sustainably is such a broad concept. It means different things for different people, and what’s sustainable for me, may not be sustainable for you.

In all honesty, personally, I feel as though I’m not living as sustainably as I could. The thought of this nags at me almost constantly. I feel as though I’m letting down the planet, my friends, climate activists, others who are living as sustainably as they can, and myself. I think it’s hard because I’ve created a blog and have an Instagram all about living a sustainable lifestyle, yet I’m struggling to myself allowing cognitive dissonance to thrive within me.

I also feel as though the thought of not being sustainable/low-waste/good enough stops a lot of people from even trying. It’s definitely stopped me from pursuing more sustainable options. I partially blame Instagram for how I feel. While it inspires me, I can clearly see how others are living more sustainably than me; and it makes me feel as though my words don’t matter because someone else within the eco-sphere is doing better than me. I’m sure you’ve felt the way I feel. You think you’ve done a good job at something and then someone creates/does something just that bit better. But then again, we all are our own worst critics.

I’ ve been rambling and complaining about everything, but the point is: it shouldn’t matter. All that matters is that we do the best we can.

Progress over perfection

Sustainability is different for everyone. We should all try to do the things we can do without feeling bad about our efforts. Living sustainably isn’t a competition nor should we ever make it one. It’s about doing the best we can to look after our planet.

It could be a small swap like switching to shampoo bars or using a reusable coffee cup or even catching public transport when you can. It could be watching some documentaries or voicing your concerns with family and friends or buying second-hand items. It could be mending a shirt rather than throwing it away or starting a compost or sharing your stuff with friends. Starting could be anything. We need to remember that it’s about implementing change in our lives to benefit our planet while also maintaining our health.

No one is perfect. Everyone slips up. The thing is we shouldn’t beat ourselves up over it. Instead, we should accept that it’s happened and continue on with our journey.

Progress over perfection

It’s what I’m trying to remember. It’s what I think everyone should remember.

Instead of feeling like I’m not good enough and not doing enough, I’m going to plan my attack. I’m going to plot out what I can do to live more sustainably for me. I’m going to continue taking small steps to build a better lifestyle. I’m not going to give up, and you shouldn’t either. No matter the situation, we need to remember that it’s progress over perfection.

Setbacks are going to happen.

It’s going to take time to get where we want to be. While the destination is important, it’s the journey that will make it worthwhile.

Small steps lead to big things. And with all of this being said, I challenge you to keep going and keep working hard on what you believe in.

I challenge you to focus on your progress and how far you’ve come over being perfect.