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Doing Marriage Badly Is Far Better Than Not Trying at All · Doing Marriage Well

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  Doing Marriage Well for September 14, 2026 Doing marriage badly is far better than not trying at all.
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  I'm sure you've heard Hunter S. Thompson's Anything Worth Doing is Worth Doing Right.
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  But have you heard how G.K. Chesterton turned that on its head by saying,
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  If a thing is worth doing, it's worth doing badly.
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  The statement is not about doing things poorly. It's about the danger of perfectionism.
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  If fear of failure stops you from trying, that's a problem.
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  If you won't even try because you know you can't do it perfectly, then you are lost.
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  Saying it's worth doing badly means doing it badly is better than not doing it at all. Far better.
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  This is a very important idea to apply to your marriage. No one does marriage
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  perfectly. We all make mistakes and blow it from time to time.
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  We must avoid getting so hung up on our failures that we stop trying.
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  Just as important, we have to feel the same way about our spouse.
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  When they make an effort, do you thank them for that, even if they blow it?
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  Sometimes getting it right is important to us, but we still must value an honest attempt.
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  If we don't, we're telling them that we expect perfectionism,
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  and that's a good way to get them to give up.
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  I've been far from perfect in my marriage, especially in the first years.
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  I cringe when I remember things I said and did thinking they were a good idea.
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  Fortunately, Lori has always been fair and reasonable, even when I hurt her.
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  That has both encouraged me to keep trying and made me want to get it right for her sake.
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  Over 41 years later, I'm still not perfect I blow it less often and less spectacularly
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  But I still blow it And my wonderful wife still loves, forgives,
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  and thanks me for my efforts.
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  By the way, Chesterton was a brilliant Christian apologist He said,
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  The Christian ideal has not been tried and found wanting It has been found difficult and left untried,
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  This is Paul, and perfectionism has no part to play in doing marriage well Thank you.