2. The Search for Perfection Is Futile

Psychologist and presenter of BBC Radio 4's All in the Mind Claudia Hammond reads from her new book on the 21st-century phenomenon of overwhelm.

All of us know the unsettling sensation of acceleration - the feeling that there's too much to do, not enough time to do it, and the pressure is relentless. There is always something new, something more, something better. Even switching off seems impossible. This is overwhelm: that persistent feeling that you can't cope, that the demands on you are excessive, that you can't see a way out.

From perfectionism, to overconfidence, fear of regret to coping with the stress, Hammond offers fascinating personal stories, calm and convincing analysis, as well as the tools to take on everything life throws at us.

Today: how to overcome perfectionism, and why putting pressure on ourselves, combined with external pressures to be perfect, is leading to overwhelm, especially among the young.

Written and read by: Claudia Hammond is an award-winning writer and broadcaster. She is Visiting Professor of the Public Understanding of Psychology at the University of Sussex and presenter of BBC Radio 4's All in the Mind.
Abridger: Julian Wilkinson
Producer: Justine Willett