We the GenX bankers have grown up in an environment where missing the right punctuation in the draft of a letter was 'murder'. During those early days in banking, we learnt that the only way to produce something had to be 'perfect' way. This had its merits as well, we developed a keen eye for details and overtime & practice, could quickly point out errors. We used to listen with awe, how a fellow colleagues' draft was thrown out of the table (literally)
following which he never made the same mistake again.
Well, times have changed and such methods of learning are no longer the order of the day.
For some "Drivers" (personality type), it is more important to get the task accomplished rather than doing it the perfect way. I am grateful that I could see both sides of the world and the evolution of management practices; the traditional dogmatic approach and the new way of doing things primarily influenced by the MNC Banks, then existing in India. I also credit my
evolution journey, to the international work exposures that I received.
We have over time learnt the agile (low hierarchy, empowered cross-functional teams) way of working. While I am still grateful for the 'attention training', I learnt that people function at their best in a no fear situation, avoiding the fear of making mistakes. This freedom does not compromise on integrity but makes the environment thrive for innovation and productivity.
Here is an interesting read on perfectionism–