That’s great advice you had (and a great Minister, it sounds like!) I think we develop a worrying attitude to mistakes at school; if you’re being tested and graded constantly, mistakes feel like something “wrong” when they’re really just part of the learning process. Sure, you need to fix the consequences of a mistake — and that can be a real pain — but it doesn’t mean you need to feel awful about it.

I suspect if we were to map the various ages at which we realised that screwing up was part of life and we should use the experience, learn, and then get over it, that most of us would have had these ephiphanies at some point in our twenties.

Just far enough out from the school / university mentality of “There’s one correct answer and I’ll be embarrassed if I get it wrong”, and just far enough into whatever we choose to do with our lives to realise that we are responsible adults, and screwing up is part of being better, rounded, excellent people.

I can chart mine to a very specific afternoon in 2006. I’d just started my dream job with an environment department, and was writing briefs for the Minister. I’d worked hard for this postion and wanted to make a good impression. In one of my first briefs I managed to screw up some figures, which my director came and pointed out to me. My face must have looked a sight, as she immediately said: “don’t beat yourself up about it, it’s just a mistake, get the right figures and send it to me this afternoon”

Best advice ever! Free-lancer, employee, entrepreneur, whatever. If you make a mistake don’t beat yourself up about it, just do what you can to fix it and move on.

Also I love this quote (from a book called ‘as above so below’):
If you can’t fight
And you can’t flee
Flow

Cheers, Lee-Anne, http://www.rpsinc.ca
.-= Lee-Anne Ragan´s last blog ..Kindness doesn’t have to be huge, hairy and hard to reach (or teach) =-.