Most of us are wrong about something 365 days out of the year. It may be unexpected spelling mistakes in an email sent to a colleague, forgetting to put the cap back on the gallon of milk in your fridge, or even accidentally picking up spicy salsa when you meant to pick up mild. That’s okay; all of us are human and, regardless of our relentless attempts at perfection, we’re going to end up making some mistakes most days.

Because we’re error-prone as humans, someone has come up with the brilliant idea of inventing a holiday where it doesn’t really matter if you’re perfect because this is a day that allows you to accept everything you do, even mistakes, as perfection. This holiday is known as National Everything You Do Is Right Day.

Facts About Perfectionism

Although every human being should do the best job they can, the tendency towards perfectionism is causing a lot of people problems. To illustrate our point, we’ve listed some of the things that we’ve learned about perfectionism as we did our research on National Everything You Do Is Right Day. Let’s take a look at them before we continue on with talking about how this holiday should be observed.

Perfectionists Aren’t More Successful Than Non-Perfectionists

One thing that research has shown is that perfectionists aren’t more successful than people who aren’t perfectionists. In fact, the opposite may even be true, as perfectionists are often prone to procrastination. After all, when a perfectionist has trouble reaching their perceived goal, they may not try at all.

Perfectionism Can Cause Mental Health Challenges

Another thing that many people might not know is that perfectionism has been linked to anxiety, depression, eating disorders such as anorexia and bulimia, and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). This is especially true when it’s perfectionism that a person directs at oneself.

Perfectionism Can Shorten Your Lifespan

An unintended consequence of a nonstop pursuit of perfection is a shortening of one’s lifespan. One study that was recently published in the Journal of Health Psychology found that people who consider themselves to be perfectionists tend to have shorter lifespans than people who don’t consider themselves to be perfectionists. Why? Because the constant stress of attempting almost impossible or extremely difficult goals and the self-loathing that can accompany that quest can put a lot of stress on a person’s organs.

Observing National Everything You Do Is Right Day

All that has to be done to observe this holiday is to cut yourself some slack and just ignore your mistakes. Now, we’re not suggesting that you ignore your mistakes to a negligent or potentially criminal level; we’re just saying that you should cut yourself some slack on this holiday and ignore the mistakes that don’t matter. After all, it’s National Everything You Do Is Right Day, and you should take the day to declare that everything you do is right. While you’re epitomizing perfection, be sure to use the hashtag #EverythingYouDoIsRightDay on your social media accounts.