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Straights A's Ain't for Adults

Perfection is impossible. So not only is aiming for 100% a fool's errand, but you are holding yourself back if you try.

Or so argues The Wall Street Journal this week in a new look at the average student's favorite fact: B students rule the world. The latest twist is a recommendation that adults give up their striving for perfection and only put 85% into anything they do.

No more As for effort.

Whether it's training people, animals or artificial intelligence, everyone and everything seems to learn faster and better if they get 15 percent of the test answers wrong, according to a 2019 study published in Nature Communications.

Dozens of studies destroy the mythological effectiveness of the Type-A personality. Hard-chargers who work crazy hours and put 100% into everything more frequently burn out, make errors and take unncessary risks.

In June, The Harvard Business Review advised that maximum effort does not produce maximum results. Greg McKeown, author of "Effortless: Make It Easier to Do What Matters" and "Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less," argued smart bosses only ask for 85% effort. Asking for more generates burnout and employee turnover.

Many bosses, though, are not smart. They push and prod employees, making them feel inadequate and vulnerable for not achieving unattainable goals. This may explain why almost half of Americans do not take the meager paid time off their employers offer.

No wonder quiet quitting and "act your wage" have become subtle forms of rebellion.

Most of us know overthinking and overworking are unproductive. My most popular columns come from the least amount of conscious effort, while those I obsess over generate the least interaction. The more over-scheduled I become, the more likely I will make errors.

Striving for perfection can also diminish our personal lives. In the 19th century, before recorded music, almost everyone played a musical instrument and many joined community bands or orchestras. Today, most people will only engage in a hobby if they have professional-level skills because they feel anything less is embarrassing.

Perfection has always been in the eye of the beholder, which makes it an unreliable and fraudulent standard. Instead, work at a comfortable pace and allow yourself to make mistakes. After all, that's how you learn and get better at any task.

Chris Tomlinson, Business Columnist

What Else I'm Writing

Texas state Attorney General Ken Paxton, left, stands with his attorney Tony Buzbee, right, before his impeachment trial in the Senate Chamber at the Texas Capitol, Tuesday, Sept. 5, 2023, in Austin, Texas. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

Photo by: Eric Gay/Associated Press

Texas AG Paxton's benefits for donors are unrivaled

His defense attorneys argue benefits offered to a donor were normal, which is more disturbing than the impeachment allegations.

A sign warns of a buried petroleum pipeline running along Highway 3 near FM 528 in Webster Tuesday, June 13, 2023.

Photo by: Kirk Sides, Staff Photographer

Texas officials took $6.3M from pipelines accused in blackouts

Perhaps that explains why no Texas official is looking into fraud and market manipulation accusations.

What I'm Reading

Must Read: How a warming climate could impact hurricanes 15 years after Ike (Houston Chronicle and San Antonio Express-News)

Should Read: U.S. poverty spiked in 2022, reversing gains, Census Bureau data shows (Washington Post)

Interesting Read: Which major Texas city has the worst, most destructive weather? Let's break it down. Who's got it worse, North Texas or the Gulf Coast? (Houston Chronicle and San Antonio Express-News)

Technical Read: Should the US pursue a new Cold War with China? An extensive, thought-provoking debate. (Brookings)

Fun Read: Honky-Tonk Heroines The Texas women of Outlaw Country break the rules their own way. (Texas Highways)

Question of the Week

Is perfectionism the path to success or a wage slave's treadmill? Reply directly to this email and tell me your thoughts.

Mailbag

Last Week's Question: Have the opening days of the impeachment trial changed your expectations for the outcome?

"To my surprise, there is a possibility that the facts may make a difference. Even though (Ken Paxton's defense attorney) Tony Buzbee wants to make this about anything else, (prosecutor) Rusty Hardin is presenting the case effectively. There is hope." – Rosalind Wilkins Haith, Houston

"I still stand by what I said a few weeks ago. 'Paxton is too big to fail,' or maybe Republican politics is too big to fail." – Wilton Smith, Round Rock

"The impeachment is a show trial for Texas voters. Ken Paxton will be found not guilty and will win any election in which he is a candidate. If he is found guilty, I will be stunned. It would mean the money dried up, and Paxton became too much of a liability." – Anita Simpson, Pearland

"What I hear so far is 100% political. Can a senator vote to impeach because they dislike Ken Paxton? Is the standard morality and precedent? This is different from a criminal court where laws define illegal actions and what constitutes proof of the violation and are not these guidelines missing from the impeachment rules?" – Harry Elliott, Houston

"No. There aren't enough senators who are brave/principled enough to risk being primaried from the right. The trial only proceeded to give the Republican senators words to claim as the basis for their vote to acquit." – Jan Clark, Houston

"If this process fails, there will be nothing to stop the Far Right from serving only themselves at every citizen's expense." – Milton Finegold, Houston

The Takeaway

The Texas Senate will soon vote on whether to remove Attorney General Ken Paxton from office. We'll learn much about our elected officials and watch the shock waves roll through the Republican Party of Texas, no matter the outcome.

Less clear is what impact the vote will have on Texas Democrats.

If the Senate removes Paxton, conservative Republicans will breathe a sigh of relief, thankful the extremist wing's standard-bearer will not become a millstone around the party's neck. They will claim they policed themselves.

If Paxton remains in office, House Speaker Dade Phelan will lose his post, Christian nationalists will assume power, and the 2024 election will become a lot more interesting. Expect the culture wars to shift into high gear.

Next year's election, though, will center on the presidential race. If Paxton is out of a job, he could spend more time with former President Donald Trump on the campaign trail — two indicted and impeached aberrations on a national tour. Talk about a spectacle.