Last week, during Saturday morning yoga class, the instructor, Stacey, said, “Perfection does not matter. Only progress is important.” Although she was referring to yoga poses, her statement was applicable to most things.

Stacey’s simple message has continued to resonate with me – I discussed it at the Boot Camp for IRN decorators on Wednesday and I thought I’d mention it to you, too.

Her reminder – that the goal is to be satisfied with tiny steps – applies to making our homes more comfortable, more functional and more aesthetically pleasing, too. Our rooms evolve slowly. The improvements take time, patience, and satisfaction with small advances.

Even if our home never reaches the point where we feel it is perfect, just getting an accent table will provide space for a book and a glass; rearranging the furniture will make the family room more comfortable to chat, slip-covering the sofa pillows will help them finally coordinate with the rug. These little details will make it better.

My hip flexors are too tight for me to ever become an advanced yogi; yet with every class I continue to work and appreciate my bits of progress. I hope you’ll enjoy the strides you are making, too. At home, in yoga class, or whatever each of us chooses to do: Isn’t savoring every step of the journey even more important than simply focusing on the destination?

(photo: courtesy Stacey Shupert)