misinterpretation abounds
I've seen the same phrase used a few times lately, and I figured somebody must be quoting somebody else, but what got me today is that I've now seen it used for opposite intents, so I had to go look it up.
"Perfect is the enemy of good enough"
(or, the original "Le mieux est l'ennemi du bien.", from Voltaire's Dictionnaire Philosophique (1764))
1. True excellence is threatened by the merely good, and must therefore remain hostile to it. It's a real BeAllThatYouCanBe mantra - if your goal is "good enough", then you'll never keep at it long enough to really get the full benefits of the situation. Stop skimming through life and put some effort in!
2. The concept of "best" lays siege to any potentially successful actions. It's a GetOffYourAss mantra - if you sit around weighing all the options looking for the absolute perfect solution, you'll never actually take action and do an adequate solution. Stop procrastinating and making excuses, and just get moving!
I'm not going back to Voltaire to decide which he meant.... that's kind of beside the point, as both are valid in context. I mostly just think it's interesting that I managed to be oblivious to this phrase until the last month or so, and in just a few weeks I've seen it used in both meanings.
"Perfect is the enemy of good enough"
(or, the original "Le mieux est l'ennemi du bien.", from Voltaire's Dictionnaire Philosophique (1764))
1. True excellence is threatened by the merely good, and must therefore remain hostile to it. It's a real BeAllThatYouCanBe mantra - if your goal is "good enough", then you'll never keep at it long enough to really get the full benefits of the situation. Stop skimming through life and put some effort in!
2. The concept of "best" lays siege to any potentially successful actions. It's a GetOffYourAss mantra - if you sit around weighing all the options looking for the absolute perfect solution, you'll never actually take action and do an adequate solution. Stop procrastinating and making excuses, and just get moving!
I'm not going back to Voltaire to decide which he meant.... that's kind of beside the point, as both are valid in context. I mostly just think it's interesting that I managed to be oblivious to this phrase until the last month or so, and in just a few weeks I've seen it used in both meanings.