It's Okay to Mess Up...Sometimes

Car undergoing a brake job in a rustic outdoor setting, with the door open and tools spread on the gravel.

Let's be honest. We all make mistakes probably several times a day. I did the other day. I caught myself doom scrolling just because I was tired and lacked the motivation to get started. Since we make mistakes every day, when is it not okay? Simple: when you fail to learn from your mistakes. Mistakes are a part of life. We have to make them in order to grow, but when we do not learn from them, we fail to grow.

Should that stop us from trying? Absolutely not! I wrote this down the other day from the John Eades podcast. "Just because you have not does not mean you cannot." Simply put, if you do not try you will never know if you can do it or not.

This weekend I changed the rear brakes on my wife's car. At this point, it is probably at least the 8th time I've changed brakes on a car, but I believe the fastest. Most people do not want to touch these, because who wants to get in the car and not be able to stop? During the many brake changes, I've made countless mistakes, forgetting to release the parking brake, putting the pads on backward, breaking a bolt... The list goes on and usually, I am good for at minimum 3-4 hours to do a set of breaks by myself. So what happened this time, was I watched a few videos, made a few mental notes, set my tools out, and took my time throughout the process. Why did I do all this? Because I have learned what works and does not each time.

The other day I was talking about snow plow parents, yes that is a term that has overtaken helicopter parents. See helicopters keep an eye on their kids ready to swoop down and course correct, which is a problem, but snow plows are much worse. These individuals are known to clear the path for their kids, making sure that nothing goes wrong in the process. It goes as far as calling the company their kids are interviewing with or even sitting in on the interviews with them. Please do not do this!

We all need to make mistakes, but when we make them we have to learn from them. Then as you go a step further, teach others about your mistakes. Be willing to admit where you messed up and help others not to do the same thing you did, but if they don't listen then you are going to have to let them just make the mistake.

John Eades - How to Jumpstart 2025

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/beyond-the-goal-how-to-jumpstart-your-2025/id1093687579?i=1000682347544