Today Go Make a Mistake

We all make mistakes, every single one of us sometimes on a daily basis. We forget this, we flub that, we leave out a step or completely lose track of something that sucks up all our energy and time. We’re human, it happens. I love these words from Tallulah Bankhead. She reminds us that making mistakes is the only way we get better. So instead of avoiding them make mistakes faster. more often, and with greater enthusiasm.

Wouldn’t it be incredible to work for someone who asks how often can you make a mistake? Can you do it more often? Is it possible for you to help others make mistakes? Instead of starting a meeting by asking who accomplished what, imagine if it started by asking people to share their big, whopping flubs first. Everyone would learn, everyone would laugh, and everyone would then know how to prevent themselves from making that same mistake. The level of work would grow exponentially because it was safe to try new things, safe to learn, and safe to admit something went wrong. It sounds crazy doesn’t it? The sooner we fail the sooner we learn.

I’m making handmade books this week and today we had to ‘rip’ our own text block. This entails taking a very large piece of paper and ‘ripping’ it into page size pieces, multiple, multiple, multiple times. I made a lot of boo boos and learned A LOT. I better appreciate the people who make and sell these AND I know what not to do next time…which in my case will be tomorrow. It was really nice to be in a place where I was free to make a mistake, recognize it and change to correct it. I have learned a great deal, more than I thought I could about cutting, ripping and gluing paper. Who knew?

None of us is perfect. We all make mistakes. It is amazing and really freeing when you can share your mistakes with others. It bonds us, it releases us, it humbles us AND it helps us know that the other person no matter what we think is human too. Maybe today you will have the guts to share your mistakes with others. Without our foibles we would be nothing, as it is our imperfections and mistakes that make us who we are. Today go make a mistake, learn and do it sooner!