Thought for the Week “Admit your mistakes,” is hardly the motto of our current culture. If anything, it’s the opposite. Being exposed for having ever been anything other than what one claims to be can mark the end of a career, or even, tragically, a life. Suicide, which is at an all-time high, is more-often-than-not, […]

Why You Need to Own Your Errors

My thoughts on this post that I like so much I am lending my platform

I have a gift for being teachable.  It is ok to correct me.  People will say this sort of thing, but they do not mean it.  Often, they do not know they do not mean it. “Just tell me if you have a problem with me.” I am a person who believes people mean the words they say and I do not automatically consider other aspects of speech that give meaning, like context, tone, or a person’s history.  People got really mad at me when I obediently set about correcting them.

No one got as angry as I did, however. For me, to say I made a mistake was almost a form of rejection. A mistake morphed into I AM wrong, from, I did something wrong.  I fought to defend my positions, opinions, and actions with all the determination of someone who does not want to be cast out of the group.

I do not remember how the epiphany came to me. It is said there was only one perfect person. To say I am never wrong is like saying my peer group is me–and Jesus. Such out of control grandiosity was too much for even me–a person full of pride and devoted to image.  The idea developed into a further realization that since all people are flawed, making a mistake is not what separates me, but what makes me  human. There’s no getting rid of me!

I still care about image. But my concerns are not rooted in thr desire to look or be flawless and beyond questioning.  What I want people to see is someone open to correction so I can make yhe necessary changes.