The Danger of Letting Perfectionism Stop Your Progress (Reflections from Podfest)

Could perfectionism and comparison ruin your greatest opportunity before you even get to enjoy it? 

If you let it, your desire to be 'perfect' might be the thing that robs you of the ability to show up confidently and authentically - and I (Allen) learned this from experience. 

I'm letting you into a vulnerable moment right before I spoke for an audience of podcasters at Podfest 2026, the largest independent podcaster conference in the world. In this honest reflection, you'll discover how perfectionism and comparison can stop you from showing up as the God-gifted artist and creator you are - which keeps others from seeing all you have to offer. 

If you'd like to see the slide presentation and links that we shared with the Podfest audience, head to https://allencpaul.com/podfest 

Transcript

0:00
So, this last weekend I had the amazing opportunity to speak at Podfest 2026, which is a podcast conference for all kinds of independent content creators—podcasters and YouTubers—to help us all manage our podcasts better, grow, and network.

0:15
And honestly, it’s something I look forward to every year. But this year, I felt a little bit of pressure. Maybe I’ve always felt pressure, but this was a different kind of pressure.

0:27
And I wanted to share the honest feelings I had right before I was about to give my presentation. So I recorded this during one of our live streams the day before I spoke.

0:39
Now I’m back as I’m recording this. Podfest was amazing. The team at Podfest—Chris Klos, Andrew, Wendy, and all the people who make this happen—they are absolutely rock stars.

0:52
And I’m so glad that God and Geeks is a welcome part of the Podfest community. But like I said, there was a little bit of insecurity going on.

1:00
So I shared my thoughts. I want you to hear what was really going on in my head right before I spoke.

1:06
And thank you to all those who did come to my presentation, who are leaving me messages even as I’m recording about how much you enjoyed what I shared. It means the world to me.

1:18
It means everything I’m about to talk about in this recording was unfounded. You were listening, you were following along, and I didn’t have to worry about perfection.

1:28
But as I share in this little excerpt, it was getting to me right before. So I hope this helps you realize that you’re not the only one who gets in their own head.

1:37
That allows the perfectionism mechanism to start running and making you feel like you’re not going to do a good job, that you’re not going to be effective, that you’re not going to be blessed.

1:48
That you’re not going to be the best when you show up on that stage for that performance or presentation.

1:55
And like I said, I hope this little five-minute creative therapy I had to do for myself helps you feel more comfortable knowing you can make progress without being stuck in perfectionism.

2:11
So let’s talk about progress or perfection. Which one are you aiming for right now?

2:22
As I’m sharing this, right before Podfest—right before I speak—I am really, really struggling with the idea of having the perfect presentation.

2:35
Why is that? Because there are so many amazing speakers here with me.

2:41
I just got to see Roberto Blake, who we had on our podcast back in May of 2025. He’s a YouTube expert. Pat Flynn was presenting here as well.

2:54
We’ve had so many incredible speakers, and I get to watch them over and over again.

3:01
And as I watch them, I feel that intimidation. I feel that comparison.

3:08
And I start to think, “Well, I need to have just as good a presentation as they do.”

3:15
Of course, I’m assuming their presentations were perfect—perfect in terms of what I saw.

3:21
I didn’t see any flaws, mistakes, or slides out of order. Everything looked like they had it all together.

3:29
And I want to match that perfection.

3:33
Even as I’m talking here, I’ll share more later about the tools I’m using and how I’m preparing. But in terms of progress versus perfection, I’m working on my slides right now.

3:49
We’re driving up from Miami to Orlando—my wife and I—after a late-night training at our church.

3:57
We left around 9:00 p.m. It’s a three-and-a-half-hour drive.

4:03
And the whole time my brain is going: “Do I have all the slides? Do I have everything I need?”

4:08
I’m ruminating over everything I can do to improve the slideshow.

4:13
Honestly, I was in full perfection mode. It had to wow everyone. It had to have all the bells and whistles.

4:23
And sure enough, my wife hit me with this one. I even wrote about it in the newsletter.

4:29
She said, “There’s my procrastinating perfectionist again.”

4:38
And man, I was both mad and comforted at the same time—like, “Okay, yep, you’re right.”

4:51
Because my desire to be perfect was limiting my progress.

4:56
I wasn’t going to get everything out of this conference. I wasn’t going to be present.

5:01
I’m being honest—it’s creative therapy right now.

5:07
I was wrestling with questions like: Do I deserve to be here? Should I be speaking on this topic?

5:16
Have I made enough progress? Do I have enough followers?

5:20
Are people going to be impressed with me?

5:22
And suddenly, the progress I had made was erased in my mind.

5:27
And I think the lesson here is this: the desire for perfection not only stops your progress—it erases the progress you’ve already made.

5:38
It keeps you from seeing how far you’ve come because you’re so focused on where you’re not.

5:46
And I fell into that.

5:51
Progress over perfection means recognizing and celebrating how far you’ve come.

5:55
Five years ago, I wasn’t speaking on stages. Now I’ve spoken three or four times.

6:01
I didn’t know anyone in podcasting. Now I can walk up to people at booths like Buzzsprout and have real relationships.

6:14
Even within the Christian creator space, these people are my friends.

6:21
People like Alex Sanfilippo from PodMatch—who’s also been on the podcast—building incredible communities.

6:30
If I focus only on perfecting this presentation, I won’t acknowledge the progress.

6:39
And that progress is what fuels me. It’s what I should be celebrating.

6:48
So honestly, that’s the entire takeaway today: progress matters more than perfection.

6:54
Perfection erases your memory and your ability to appreciate the progress you’ve already made.

7:01
We’re all creators. We’re all believers. We all know God has brought us a mighty long way.

7:08
But I want us to start 2026 without the burden of thinking perfection is the goal.

7:13
Perfection is not the goal.

7:16
Sanctification—that’s the goal. Hey, that’ll preach.

7:22
Perfection won’t happen on this side of heaven.

7:29
We’re continually being refined, becoming more complete.

7:35
And as we pursue that completeness, we make more and more progress.