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384. Why The Imperfectionist

Posted on May 6, 2026May 4, 2026 by caritagardiner
Screenshot 2025-11-16 at 7.27.51 AM

If you click the photo above, you'll get to Oliver Burkeman's page on which you can subscribe to his newsletter. I don't know how to get back to the first issue I read, so I made a copy of it on this Google Doc, which you should be able to read no matter where you are or what IP address you're reading my post from. I hope you find it as interesting as I did; if you think he's one smart cookie, you could sign up as I did to be able to read his future posts.

I first heard about his writing when a friend (Hi, JS!) forwarded the "You Have to Do The Living Yourself" essay to me last year. Kindly, my friend said that Burkeman's writing reminded him of mine. I'll take that compliment any day. Thanks!

What I appreciate most about OB's way of thinking is that it's forgiving. Sometimes, I get so eager to move forward that I'll try all the tips and tricks at once. As you might expect, I don't stick to any of them for long. And I might expect the hack being touted by someone else as the next big thing that's going to change my life. OB reminds me that all the hacks in the world won't change my life if I don't do them. I am the only person who can steer my ship, and I have to remember that even when I'm tired and busy and spaced out, I'm still the captain. As the one in charge of making decisions for myself, if my choices don't align with my big-picture goals, then I have nobody to blame but myself when I end up somewhere I don't want to be.

What do you think about Oliver Burkeman's ideas? Please share your responses in the comments.

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WHAT I DO

I serve as a class dean and teach English to high schoolers at a boarding school in Connecticut. I’ve earned a Bachelor of Arts (Amherst College), an Education Master in Learning and Teaching (Harvard University Graduate School of Education), a Master of Arts in English (Bread Loaf School of English), and most recently a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing with a certificate in the online teaching of writing (Southern New Hampshire University).

As a writer, I hope to capture the complexity and joy of life in the New England boarding school world. On this site, I share what I know about trying to write fiction while deaning, teaching English, coaching, and doing the other tasks associated with helping to raise over six hundred other people’s children.

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Read my recent “Why” Wednesday Blog Posts

  • 384. Why The Imperfectionist
  • NetGalley Review of Burnout Summer
  • NetGally Review of How to Find a Guy in Five Weddings
  • 383. Why AI
  • 382. Why Breakfast (GUEST POST)
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