"We, of course, make any changes she requests and respect that she takes every single thing we do so seriously, but you know, sometimes it's a Wednesday, and you just want to do your job and be done with it without being bogged down by changes that weren't actually necessary but perhaps made the work just a little bit more perfect."
"You say that you and your co-workers take her criticism personally, and that's the first (if not easiest) thing to address. This is her process. She is not judging you, and rewriting documents is probably how she comprehends what she's reviewing. If she is a nice person and does this to everyone, she probably just wants to help-and thinks she is helping."
A perfectionist manager provides extensive, detailed edits that teammates perceive as personal criticism and that can slow workflows. Colleagues should reframe the edits as the manager's process rather than personal judgment, recognizing that rewriting may help her understand work. If reviews are causing delays, approach the manager with appreciation for thoroughness, ask which suggestions are essential versus optional, and request clearer priorities or scope for reviews. Propose batching feedback, setting deadlines, or offering to implement revisions. If the dynamic persists, involve leadership to define acceptable review depth and timelines to balance accuracy with timely completion.
Read at Slate Magazine
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