As a human being, I make mistakes. We all do. It’s actually one of the main ways we learn. I have found that changing my perception from mistakes are ‘bad’ and to-be-avoided to the perception that Mistakes-are-Learnings, has made a HUGE difference in my life. If Mistakes-are-Learnings, then when mistakes happen, it’s an opportunity to be empowered rather than feeling ‘something’s wrong with me’ or ‘I’m not good enough.’ 

How Perception Changes Everything

The perception we take makes all the difference. The perceptions we come from are what create our life.

A great example of this was from a couple years ago when I was interviewed for an article in “Vail Health” magazine, a local magazine in Eagle County, Colorado that comes out once a year. I felt excited and honored to be interviewed. The article was titled, “Exercise for Positive Mental Health.”  The interview was fun and I couldn’t wait to see the article. Then I was sent a copy of the article to review before it was sent to print. 

I glanced at the copy and it was exciting to see my name and words as part of the article. I remember feeling proud and glowing. 

A copy of the magazine arrived in my mailbox a couple of months later and when I read the article and saw my words in a quote box – my breath became short and shallow, my body tensed and my mind raced. The quote I saw was wrong. I had stated that “adrenaline” was a “calming, feel-good chemical,” which was not correct. What I had meant to say was “oxytocin” or maybe it was written wrong in the interview.

With my racing thoughts came, “What will people think of me?!” “What if other professionals see this and what will they think of me?” “People will think I’m an imposter…maybe I am!” And other such thoughts of fear and anxiety.

Owning My Reaction

Because I practice every day observing my reactions, I was aware of the stress response that was “flipping my lid.” I started to slow down my breath, lengthen my exhale, and shake my body out. Meeting my reaction, I was able to come to the facts and accept what was printed could not be changed. 

Owning my part in this situation, I went back to the opportunity I had to review the article. I remembered feeling overcome with excitement, which probably kept me from really going through what was written in detail to catch the error. Moving fast and letting the emotion take over has been a pattern I have been working to do differently for years. Here, it black and white print was evidence in why I keep working at it. I laughed at myself and said, “Oh, well. It’s a good learning and reminder.”  

But here’s the really funny part…

So, while writing this blog, I revisited the article. This magazine has sat on my shelf for two years, collecting dust. Because of my mistake and some residual embarrassment and shame, I didn’t share the article with anyone. 

I went to the quote box first to read my words…then I reread it again…and again more slowly…and I started laughing.  

When I looked at the article two years ago, my mind saw “calming, feel-good chemical” and “adrenaline” in the same sentence, yet missed that what I had said was actually correct.

“When we get our body moving, chemicals release – like oxytocin, a calming, feel-good chemical and stress reliever, and endorphins and adrenaline – pick-me-ups.”

I had not given misinformation or been misquoted. I had made a mistake! This mistake came from, again, moving to fast and not pausing to really explore what was written with curiosity. Letting the emotion carry my perception away.

The Real Lesson

The perspective my mind went to, “I f@#ked up,” kept me from seeing reality.  It may not seem like a big deal, but this is what spiraled from this little incident:

• I didn’t share this article with anyone for fear of judgment. 
• I started to question my ability to retain information about the brain and body’s response to stress. 
• Not feeling confident, I have shied away from quoting research for fear of ‘getting it wrong.’
• For TWO YEARS, I have limited my belief in myself due to a perceived mistake that I didn’t want to look at and wanted to avoid.

Wow! My perception of ‘who I am’ was completely and totally untrue.

The thing is, we all do this all the time. We go with our reactions, taking them as truth, when really they just come from the perspective we are taking rather than actual facts.

This is why our reactions are so important to be aware of – so that we can STOP and examine them to find the truth, the understanding, and the clarity of why we had the reaction. Just by simply being willing to share my perceived mistake, while being honest, I was able to see the bigger mistake. This allowed me to let go of the false perception of ‘who I am’ and be present to reality. By coming back to the belief that Mistakes-are-Learnings, I was able to be more kind and compassionate to myself.

Since ‘Mistakes-are-Learnings, I can laugh, welcome the learning (or reminder), and move on. (Instead of hiding, avoiding and trying to escape a mistake, which does no one any good).

Lean into those mistakes with curiosity, honesty and the attitude that ‘Mistakes are Learnings.’

Namaste.