GroshLink

Nikki A Toyama writes in More Than Serving Tea: Asian American Women on Expections, Relationships, Leadership and Faith: Unhealthy perfectionism goes beyond striving for excellence. The ideal is the ultimate goal. Coming close doesn't count; there is no A for effort. Perfectionism sets unrealistically high standards. It is not unique to Asian culture; perfectionists live in every country of the world. But in many Asian communities there is a communal value for perfectionism. It's reinforced by how each group member functions and treats the others (p.52).

A chart on p.51 [taken from David Stoop, Hope for the Perfectionist (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1998)] contrasts Perfectionism and the Pursuit of Excellence:

Idealist vs. Realistic.

Strives for the impossible vs. Strives for the doable.

Fears failure vs. anticipates success.

Dwells on mistakes vs. learns from mistakes.

Values self by what they do vs. values self by who they are.