Perfection is a
Never ending process that 
Is full of mistakes

Perfection is a tricky word to define. My computer’s built-in dictionary provides the following definitions:

• “The condition, state, or quality of being free or as free as possible from all flaws or defects: the satiny perfection of her skin | his pursuit of golfing perfection.

• “A person or thing perceived as the embodiment of perfection: I am told that she is perfection itself.

• “The action or process of improving something until it is faultless or as faultless as possible: among the key tasks was the perfection of new mechanisms of economic management.”

Perfection defies clear definition because it is so subjective. What to one person might be a flawless work of artistic genius is to another person a goofy scribble of sloppy paint strokes and dribbles.

Rather than worrying about what is subjectively vs. objectively perfect, the third dictionary definition above provides a helpful description of what perfection might really be: a work in progress that gets us as close as possible to a state of faultlessness.

In one time and place, a rickshaw might be a perfect means of transportation. In a different time and place, a Tesla Cybertruck (should it ever exist) might be a better option. As an environment changes from state 1 to state 2, a solution built for state 1 might fall apart during the transition to state 2 and be completely useless by the time the change is complete. Impermanence is a feature, not a bug, and anything that works today is doomed to obsolescence in the future.

One of my favorite questions, picked up somewhere in a book of Zen koans, is “when is the rose perfect?” The idea is that you can’t get to the fully formed beauty of the blooming rose without first going through the less eye-pleasing process of being a seed, a sprout, and a thicket of thorny stems. Nor can you have the beauty of the blooming rose without it withering, falling, and eventually turning into worm poop.

With financial planning, the subjective nature of individual goals is similar to the subjective nature of perfection. A “perfect” financial plan might be one that efficiently achieves someone’s goals for their money. But people and their goals and values change over time just like the flower above. A “perfect” financial plan for a high income earner in his or her 40s might look very different when that same person is in his or her 70s.

All money decisions exist within the global economic system. This system is so unfathomably complex that all of the brilliant economists, planners, and advisors throughout modern history have failed to consistently provide accurate predictions of its ebbs and flows. In all likelihood, if a person or group were to actually achieve this feat, their achievement would cause the market to morph into a new thing that incorporates – and renders obsolete – any new predictive technology. Hitting a moving target once doesn’t mean that success can be repeated using the exact same method.

This is great news.

As long as markets remain unpredictable, people will make spectacular mistakes trying to figure it out. And as long as people make mistakes, they will be playing in an ocean of discovery and growth. History is full of examples of this phenomena.

Percy Spencer was an engineer working on radar technology during World War II. One day, he noticed that the candy bar in his pocket had melted while he was standing near a radar machine. This unexpected mess inspired him to experiment with different foods and discovered that microwaves could cook food quickly and efficiently. And now we have microwave ovens.

In 1928, Alexander Fleming returned from a vacation to find that a petri dish he had left out had become contaminated with mold. Instead of throwing it away, he decided to take a closer look and noticed that the mold had killed the bacteria growing in the dish. This accidental discovery led to the development of penicillin, which has saved millions of lives since its creation.

Pablo Picasso said, "I am always doing that which I cannot do, in order that I may learn how to do it." Picasso's experimentation with different techniques and styles ultimately led to the creation of some of the most iconic paintings in history.

In the world of finance, legendary investor Warren Buffet, let his emotions get the best of him and spent $200 million over 20 years trying to keep a textile company in business after firing its manager. The textile company in question? Berkshire Hathaway. Buffet’s career is full of several missteps, each of which helped him learn what was necessary for his future investing successes.

As tax season approaches its annual April 15th deadline, many people will learn the cost or benefit of their 2022 financial maneuverings. Some taxpayers will get an unexpected tax bill. They may learn they have to pay Net Investment Income Tax, Additional Medicare Tax, or IRMAA surcharges. If this is unexpected news, it can understandably deliver feelings of regret and loss.

But a well-constructed financial plan will have buffers in place to keep mistakes from doing catastrophic harm. They are going to happen, particularly in the wildly uncertain times we are now all enduring. “Whatever doesn’t kill me makes me stronger” is a cliché for a reason. As long as a person has time to learn and recover from a mistake, that person will have the capacity to improve, and get closer to what he or she desires and values.

The the core of the planning process at SeaCure is education. The idea is that by understanding as clearly as possible where you’ve been and where you are, you can make better choices about how to get where you’re going.

So, when is your financial perfect? Hopefully you can confidently answer that question. If not, we’d love to speak with you.