And so they did. What a great lesson. The scientist learned at that moment that mistakes were a natural part of the learning process and that you should never be afraid of making mistakes.

2. Own your mistakes. One of the biggest traps of perfectionism is the belief that you can’t make mistakes. And if you do, you will ruin everything or, worse, be seen as weak or a failure.

Are you afraid of anything? If you are, don’t be “scared” to admit it because, even so, you are in good company. For instance, our nation’s first president, George Washington, was afraid ...