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{{Short description|Aphorism commonly attributed to Voltaire}}
{{Short description|Aphorism commonly attributed to Voltaire}}
'''Perfect is the enemy of good''' is an [[aphorism]] which means insistence on perfection often prevents implementation of good improvements. The [[Pareto principle]] or 80–20 rule explains this numerically. For example, it commonly takes 20% of the full time to complete 80% of a task while to complete the last 20% of a task takes 80% of the effort.{{r|Gandevia}} Achieving absolute [[perfection]] may be impossible and so, as increasing effort results in [[diminishing returns]], further activity becomes increasingly inefficient.
'''Perfect is the enemy of good''' is an [[aphorism]] that means insistence on perfection often prevents implementation of good improvements. Achieving absolute [[perfection]] may be impossible; one should not let the struggle for perfection stand in the way of appreciating or executing on something that is imperfect but still of value.


== Origin ==
== Origin ==


In the English-speaking world the aphorism is commonly attributed to [[Voltaire]], who quoted an Italian [[proverb]] in his ''Questions sur l'Encyclopédie'' in 1770: "{{lang|it|Il meglio è l'inimico del bene}}".<ref>{{cite book |page=250 |volume=2 | title=Questions sur l'Encyclopédie, par des Amateurs |publisher=(publisher not named) |location=Geneva, Switzerland |year=1770 |author=Voltaire |url=https://archive.org/details/questionssurlenc02volt/page/250/mode/2up }}</ref> It subsequently appeared in his [[moral]] poem, {{lang|fr|[[s:fr:La Bégueule|La Bégueule]]}}, which starts<ref name="Hegel" /> {{quote|{{lang|fr|Dans ses écrits, un sage Italien<br>Dit que le mieux est l'ennemi du bien.}}<br><br>(In his writings, a wise Italian<br>says that the best is the enemy of the good)}}
In the English-speaking world the aphorism is commonly attributed to [[Voltaire]], who quoted an Italian [[proverb]] in his ''{{ill|Questions sur l'Encyclopédie|fr}}'' in 1770: "{{lang|it|Il meglio è l'inimico del bene}}".<ref>{{cite book |page=250 |volume=2 | title=Questions sur l'Encyclopédie, par des Amateurs |publisher=(publisher not named) |location=Geneva, Switzerland |year=1770 |author=Voltaire |url=https://archive.org/details/questionssurlenc02volt/page/250/mode/2up }}</ref> It subsequently appeared in his [[moral]] poem, {{lang|fr|[[s:fr:La Bégueule|La Bégueule]]}}, which starts:<ref name="Hegel" /> {{quote|{{lang|fr|Dans ses écrits, un sage Italien<br>Dit que le mieux est l'ennemi du bien.}}<br><br>(In his writings, an Italian sage<br>says that the best is the enemy of the good.)}}


Previously, around 1726, in his {{lang|fr|[[:fr:Pensées (Montesquieu)|Pensées]]}}, [[Montesquieu]] wrote "{{lang|fr|Le mieux est le mortel ennemi du bien}}" (The best is the mortal enemy of the good).{{r|Shackleton}}
Previously, around 1726, in his {{lang|fr|[[:fr:Pensées (Montesquieu)|Pensées]]}}, [[Montesquieu]] wrote "{{lang|fr|Le mieux est le mortel ennemi du bien}}" (The best is the mortal enemy of the good).{{r|Shackleton}}
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[[Aristotle]] and other classical philosophers propounded the principle of the [[Golden mean (philosophy)|golden mean]] which counsels against [[extremism]] in general.{{r|Shahar}}
[[Aristotle]] and other classical philosophers propounded the principle of the [[Golden mean (philosophy)|golden mean]] which counsels against [[extremism]] in general.{{r|Shahar}}


Its sense in English literature can be traced back to Shakespeare,{{r|Allen}} In his tragedy, ''[[King Lear]]'' (1606), the [[Duke of Albany]] warns of "striving to better, oft we mar what's well" and in [[Sonnet 103]]:{{quote|Were it not sinful then, striving to mend,<br>To mar the subject that before was well?}}
Its sense in English literature can be traced back to [[William Shakespeare|Shakespeare]].{{r|Allen}} In his tragedy ''[[King Lear]]'' (1606), the [[Duke of Albany]] warns of "striving to better, oft we mar what's well" and in [[Sonnet 103]]:{{quote|Were it not sinful then, striving to mend,<br>To mar the subject that before was well?}}


== Variations ==
== Variations ==


The 1893 ''Dictionary of Quotations from Ancient and Modern, English and Foreign Sources'' lists a similar proverb, which it claims is of Chinese provenance: "Better a diamond with a flaw than a pebble without one."
The 1893 ''Dictionary of Quotations from Ancient and Modern, English and Foreign Sources'' lists a similar proverb, which it claims is of [[China|Chinese]] provenance: "Better a [[diamond]] with a flaw than a pebble without one."


More recent applications include [[Robert Watson-Watt]] propounding a "cult of the imperfect", which he stated as "Give them the third best to go on with; the second best comes too late, the best never comes";<ref name="Brown" /> economist [[George Stigler]]'s assertion that "If you never miss a plane, you're spending too much time at the airport";{{r|Geiling|Landsburg}} and, in the field of [[Program optimization#When to optimize|computer program optimization]], [[Donald Knuth]]'s statement that "Premature optimization is the root of all evil".{{r|Knuth}}
More recent applications include [[Robert Watson-Watt]] propounding a "cult of the imperfect", which he stated as "Give them the third best to go on with; the second best comes too late, the best never comes";<ref name="Brown" /> economist [[George Stigler]]'s assertion that "If you never miss a plane, you're spending too much time at the airport";{{r|Geiling|Landsburg}} and, in the field of [[Program optimization#When to optimize|computer program optimization]], [[Donald Knuth]]'s statement that "Premature optimization is the root of all evil".{{r|Knuth}} In marketing, the concept of "quality creep" is also recognised as counterproductive.<ref name="Monash_2023">{{cite web | title=Quality Creep | website=[[Monash University Faculty of Business and Economics#Monash Business School, Australia|Monash Business School]] | date=April 3, 2023 | url=https://www.monash.edu/business/marketing/marketing-dictionary/q/quality-creep | access-date=April 25, 2024}}</ref>


==See also==
==See also==


*[[Gold plating (software engineering)]]
* [[Gold plating (software engineering)]]
*[[Bert_Lance#If_it_ain't_broke,_don't_fix_it|If it ain't broke, don't fix it]]
* [[Bert_Lance#If_it_ain't_broke,_don't_fix_it|If it ain't broke, don't fix it]]
*[[Nirvana fallacy]]
* [[Nirvana fallacy]]
*[[Satisficing]]
* [[Satisficing]]
*[[Utopia]]
* [[Utopia]]
*[[Wabi-sabi]]
* [[Wabi-sabi]]
*[[Worse is better]]
* [[Worse is better]]
* [[KISS Principle]]


==References==
==References==
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<ref name=Allen>{{citation |title=Allen's Dictionary of English Phrases |author=Robert Allen |publisher=Penguin UK |year=2008 |isbn=978-0140515114 |pages=242–243}}</ref>
<ref name=Allen>{{citation |title=Allen's Dictionary of English Phrases |author=Robert Allen |publisher=Penguin UK |year=2008 |isbn=978-0140515114 |pages=242–243}}</ref>
<ref name=Brown>{{citation |title=Technical and Military Imperatives: A Radar History of World War 2 |author=L Brown |page=64 |year=1999 |isbn=9781420050660}}</ref>
<ref name=Brown>{{citation |title=Technical and Military Imperatives: A Radar History of World War 2 |author=L Brown |page=64 |year=1999 |isbn=9781420050660}}</ref>
<ref name=Gandevia>{{citation |title=Equip |author1=E. Gandevia |author2=S. Breakspear |page=30 |publisher=Talent Generation |year=2009 |isbn=978-0980679304}}</ref>
<ref name=Geiling>{{citation |url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/travel/case-missing-your-next-airline-flight-180951650/ |title=If You've Never Missed a Flight, You're Probably Wasting Your Time |author=Natasha Geiling |date=23 June 2014 |journal=[[Smithsonian (magazine)|Smithsonian]]}}</ref>
<ref name=Geiling>{{citation |url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/travel/case-missing-your-next-airline-flight-180951650/ |title=If You've Never Missed a Flight, You're Probably Wasting Your Time |author=Natasha Geiling |date=23 June 2014 |journal=[[Smithsonian (magazine)|Smithsonian]]}}</ref>
<ref name=Hegel>{{citation |title=Elements of the Philosophy of Right |author1=[[Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel]] |author2=[[Allen W. Wood]] |author3=Hugh Barr Nisbet |page=447 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=1991 |isbn=978-0521348881}}</ref>
<ref name=Hegel>{{citation |title=Elements of the Philosophy of Right |author1=[[Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel]] |author2=[[Allen W. Wood]] |author3=Hugh Barr Nisbet |page=447 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=1991 |isbn=978-0521348881}}</ref>

Revision as of 15:46, 23 August 2024

Perfect is the enemy of good is an aphorism that means insistence on perfection often prevents implementation of good improvements. Achieving absolute perfection may be impossible; one should not let the struggle for perfection stand in the way of appreciating or executing on something that is imperfect but still of value.

Origin

In the English-speaking world the aphorism is commonly attributed to Voltaire, who quoted an Italian proverb in his Questions sur l'Encyclopédie [fr] in 1770: "Il meglio è l'inimico del bene".[1] It subsequently appeared in his moral poem, La Bégueule, which starts:[2]

Dans ses écrits, un sage Italien
Dit que le mieux est l'ennemi du bien.

(In his writings, an Italian sage
says that the best is the enemy of the good.)

Previously, around 1726, in his Pensées, Montesquieu wrote "Le mieux est le mortel ennemi du bien" (The best is the mortal enemy of the good).[3]

Antecedents

Aristotle and other classical philosophers propounded the principle of the golden mean which counsels against extremism in general.[4]

Its sense in English literature can be traced back to Shakespeare.[5] In his tragedy King Lear (1606), the Duke of Albany warns of "striving to better, oft we mar what's well" and in Sonnet 103:

Were it not sinful then, striving to mend,
To mar the subject that before was well?

Variations

The 1893 Dictionary of Quotations from Ancient and Modern, English and Foreign Sources lists a similar proverb, which it claims is of Chinese provenance: "Better a diamond with a flaw than a pebble without one."

More recent applications include Robert Watson-Watt propounding a "cult of the imperfect", which he stated as "Give them the third best to go on with; the second best comes too late, the best never comes";[6] economist George Stigler's assertion that "If you never miss a plane, you're spending too much time at the airport";[7][8] and, in the field of computer program optimization, Donald Knuth's statement that "Premature optimization is the root of all evil".[9] In marketing, the concept of "quality creep" is also recognised as counterproductive.[10]

See also

References

  1. ^ Voltaire (1770). Questions sur l'Encyclopédie, par des Amateurs. Vol. 2. Geneva, Switzerland: (publisher not named). p. 250.
  2. ^ Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel; Allen W. Wood; Hugh Barr Nisbet (1991), Elements of the Philosophy of Right, Cambridge University Press, p. 447, ISBN 978-0521348881
  3. ^ Robert Shackleton (1988), Essays on Montesquieu and on the Enlightenment, Voltaire Foundation at the Taylor Institution, ISBN 978-0-7294-0354-2
  4. ^ Tal Ben-Shahar (2009), The Pursuit of Perfect, McGraw Hill Professional, p. 113, ISBN 978-0-07-160882-4
  5. ^ Robert Allen (2008), Allen's Dictionary of English Phrases, Penguin UK, pp. 242–243, ISBN 978-0140515114
  6. ^ L Brown (1999), Technical and Military Imperatives: A Radar History of World War 2, p. 64, ISBN 9781420050660
  7. ^ Natasha Geiling (23 June 2014), "If You've Never Missed a Flight, You're Probably Wasting Your Time", Smithsonian
  8. ^ Steven E. Landsburg (2008), More Sex Is Safer Sex: The Unconventional Wisdom of Economics, Simon and Schuster, p. 224, ISBN 9781416532224
  9. ^ Donald Knuth (2015), Rubin H. Landau; Manuel J. Páez; Cristian C. Bordeianu (eds.), Computational Physics, Wiley, ISBN 9783527413157
  10. ^ "Quality Creep". Monash Business School. April 3, 2023. Retrieved April 25, 2024.

Further reading

  • Eric Johns (October 1988), "Perfect is the Enemy of Good Enough", U.S. Naval Institute Proceedings: 37
  • Robert Watson-Watt (1957), "The Cult of the Imperfect", Three Steps to Victory, Odhams, pp. 74–77
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