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I'm a recent convert to Black Templars and I'm just going crazy trying to paint the rims on the shoulder pads and staying inside the lines. Is there some unbelievably obvious trick I'm missing to get a clean look or does everyone who paints Astartes have unbelievably steady hands and next level brush control?

Paint the shoulder pads separately and use the edge of your brush.

If the pads are already attached to the model, just steady hands and brush control is all you need. Just keep practicing and you'll get there!

I tend to go the other way around. Since the rims are so easy to overshoot, I paint the whole shoulder pad in the rim color, then fill in the 'body' of it. Mind you, that's easy with some chapters (painting black base on green rims for Salamanders, for example).

I use the flat of the brush and drag it along the raised edge, if need be tiliting the brush so the point is facing away from the actual shoulder pad.

But it's not a Space Marine if you don't have to go back and touch up the interior of the pad, so I generally do the rims before highlighting the pad so I can clean up and highlight in one go.

Pics would help.

Basic 'painting in the lines':
You need a brush with a reasonable point. Pull, don't push the brush - it should always be leaning in the direction of your brush stroke.

Highlighting edges on shoulder rims (the Cheaty way):
Paint the rim the highlight colours (so considerably lighter than you might think).
Then apply a thin line of the base colour in the centre of the rim (see above painting in the lines). Instant double-highlight.

I blue tac my shoulder pads to a little stick and then roll it in in my finger without moving the brush, that works pretty well for me!

There is the cheat way of just highlighting the outer rim. Provided that the shadow in the pad recess is significantly darker then the rim colour or even a competely different colour, then it works just fine.

I too paint the whole pad first in the rim colour & then apply a black wash (if the rim isn't black) & then fill in the main part of the pad.
Painting them separately is also a good idea although I would clip them off the frame & clean them up, use blu-tac or even super glue to fix the inside of the pad to the end of a pencil then prime them. You can use a jar to store them while painting each one.
If you do it this way, make sure you can fit the pad on the model once it's put together. You may have to leave off the backpack to achieve this. Again this can be painted before sticking it on by gluing it to the top of an old, ruined paint brush in the little hole on the back of it.

Just take your time and reward yourself with something (chocolate bar or pint of beer ) after getting a batch done.

Don't beat yourself up if you make a mistake, they can always be corrected.

Just be glad you're not painting Chaos Marines. The have trim all over. :(