Is Your Perfectionism a Problem?

KQED's Forum

KQED

Politics, News, News Commentary

4.6 • 656 Ratings

🗓️ 15 August 2025

⏱️ 56 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

On the surface, being a perfectionist may not seem so bad. What’s wrong with wanting straight A’s or an impeccable home or conflict-free relationships? But, therapists have long warned that not managing perfectionism properly can lead to anxiety, depression and a wide range of other problems. Perfectionism manifests in various ways. Sometimes people expect themselves to be perfect or feel like they will never be good enough for others. Sometimes they expect the people around them to be perfect and end up disappointed. We’ll talk about the different kinds of perfectionism with experts who can help you keep it in check. Guests: Leslie Jamison, author; her recent article in The New Yorker is titled, "The Pain of Perfectionism" - her books include "Splinters: Another Kind of Love Story" and "The Empathy Exams" Sahaj Kaur Kohli, therapist, writer, speaker, and founder, Brown Girl Therapy; author of the book, "But What Will People Say? Navigating Mental Health, Identity, Love, and Family Between Cultures" Angela Li, licensed clinical psychologist, Based in San Francisco Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	I've ruled out uni because I want to live at home.
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0:46.4	From KQED.
0:49.6	Music. From KQED in San Francisco, I'm Alexis Madrigal.
1:03.0	In a new essay for the New Yorker, writer Leslie Jameson, profiles the researchers who have devoted their careers to describing the real and sometimes
1:13.1	terrible consequences of perfectionism in its various manifestations.
1:18.5	We'll talk about this work with Jameson, and we've got a couple of therapists with us this morning,
1:22.8	too, to help us understand how to deal with this particular cast of mind.
1:28.4	They're all coming up next right after this news. Welcome to Forum. I'm Alexis Madrigal.
1:51.6	We're talking about perfectionism this morning.
1:55.3	The show was inspired by a new essay by Leslie Jamieson and The New Yorker that makes
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