Though the exact relationship between anxiety and perfectionism is tricky to untangle, perfectionism and anxiety often go hand in hand. People who’ve been diagnosed with anxiety, for example, tend to display more perfectionistic traits than the average citizen, according to a meta-analysis published in the Journal of Clinical Psychology. Perfectionism can produce a flood of anxious thoughts and feelings when an individual’s performance falls below their excessively high standards. Part of the reason for this is that they connect their self-worth to their performance. In the work world, they’re prone to performance extremes, either setting unreasonably high standards or feverishly avoiding failure. Perfectionists tend to see themselves, and life in general, through the lens of extremes — either good or bad, victory or failure. This type of extreme thinking increases anxiety. It leaves no room for the mistakes or roadblocks that are common in everyday life. As a consequence, when things go wrong, perfectionists are more likely to dwell on their concerns, thus feeding their anxiety.