Oliver Burkeman sets his readers off on a four-week quest at the end of which lies the beauty of “imperfection.” While the enchanting realisation that each one of us is unique, warts and all, has been the bedrock of many a philosophy, this recognition has been relegated to the status of an inconsequential footnote in the modern rigmarole of life.

Burkeman sets the tone by visualising us as occupying a one-person kayak, floating unceasingly along the river of time. While inexorably the kayak is hurtling towards death, the experience along the way is an agglomeration of excitement and anticipation. A state described by the German philosopher Martin Heidegger by using the word, Geworfenheit. Literally meaning ‘throwness,’ the expression is used to denote the sheer unpredictability that is the outcome of existence itself.

Instead of getting bogged down by the dreaded “to do list,” Burkeman suggests that we maintain a “done list” instead. This list according to Burkeman provides much needed motivation by plotting and charting things that have been accomplished when weighed against the hypothetical probability of curling up in bed and doing nothing. Paraphrasing the philosopher Byung-Chul Han, ‘we produce against the feeling of lack.’ A ‘to-do list’ is emblematic of the frenzied activities which we unrelentingly engage in to wedge ourselves within the parenthesis of societal acceptability.

In addition to Martin Heidegger, Burkeman also draws on a fount of wisdom propagated by an illustrious phalanx of writers such as Jorge Luis Borges, Saint Benedict of Nursia, and Zen practioners such as Paul Loomans. Even though the book has been designed to
be one chapter a day to cover the recommended four-week period, it is a breezy one sitting read.

Burkeman produces some interesting concepts possessing great introspective value. For example, the notion of “scruffy hospitality” predicates that there is no need to wait until the house of a host is spick and span before the guests arrive. Ensuring that the most obstinate piles of stuff are picked would do the job nicely. Similarly, instead of scratching one’s head over the perfect gourmet meal to be served, one would do well to make spaghetti!

Burkeman also warns us from bestowing too much attention to our future self thereby ignoring the present. Many of us trudge through life in the hope that the sacrifices and grind of the present would lead to a glittering future. Burkeman warns against such an attitude and exhorts us to be mindful of the present while weaving plans for the future.

It is the acknowledgement of our imperfection that helps us tide over the travails of life. Possessing an “imperfect” state of mind lends a wholesome and refreshing perspective to limitations. Limitations which have always been viewed as failures. Imperfectionism enables moving away from such a negative mindset and facilitates viewing limitations not as failures but as invaluable bouts of liberation.

Meditation for Mortals – a healthy dose of medication for the mind.