Another Mistake…I hate that!
Did you ever feel down on yourself because of all of the mistakes you make? You’re frustrated and feel incompetent. Ready to give up. Well, you’re not alone. That was exactly what Otto was experiencing the other day.
———————————–
“Why bother to do anything?” Otto screamed at no one in particular, one day. “I just can’t do it! This is the third time I’ve tried to put this stupid IKEA chair together and I just can’t follow the simple directions.”
Herman happened to be nearby on his way to borrow some eggs from Lina, so he could finish a cake he was baking for Minna’s birthday. As he reached his destination, he heard Otto screaming. Minna answered the door and went to get the needed eggs as Herman drifted to the room where Otto was, surrounded by pieces of wood, screws, allen wrenches and paper directions. “Would you like some help?”
Otto looked up and answered, “No, I want someone to build furniture that just unfolds to be assembled, not one that you need an engineering degree to build yourself. I’m making too many mistakes. But that is par for the course since that is what I do with everything I try.”
Herman tried to reassure Otto. “Making mistakes isn’t the worst thing in the world. Think of how much you learn from the mistakes you make. Thomas Edison once said, ‘I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.’ So maybe in making those mistakes, you are actually learning something for the next time you have to do whatever it is your doing.”
Otto wasn’t appeased. “If that is so, I must be learning a lot. What is the worth of it, if I don’t remember the next time I build one of these chairs. Does making the same mistakes over and over again show any learning? If I’m not mistaken Einstein defined that as insanity. So either I’m stupid or insane.”
“You are neither,” was Herman’s reply. “Some things are difficult to accomplish on your own, whether it be building something, learning a skill, like math or reading, completing an assignment, and the like. There are times when you should take a step back and ask for help. You don’t need to be an expert on everything. Mistakes that repeat themselves might be a good indication that you should get assistance. As I said when I came in, Can I help you?”
Otto rethought about his IKEA dilemma and decided that he could build the chair one last time, putting the pieces in the correct slots, but having Herman around to make sure he followed the directions would make it easier. “Yes, you can help. If you would just follow along with the directions as I build the chair that might let me accomplish it quicker with fewer mistakes.”
Herman helped, the chair was completed. He retrieved the eggs he needed from Lina and went home. When he got home he was greeted by Minna who was very happy and gave Herman a big hug.
“I’ll always take a hug from you, but what’s the occasion? I haven’t even finished your cake yet.”
Minna let out a little giggle. “It’s not for the cake, silly. We just received the present you purchased for me. Don’t you remember that new computer workstation you bought from IKEA for my study room? I can’t wait until you put it together.”
—————————
I can certainly relate to Otto’s frustration with IKEA. Rarely do I put together one of their pieces without putting one piece in the wrong spot and have to partially break it down to that spot and rebuild it.
There are a lot more thoughts on making mistakes if you ever wish to search them out. Thomas Edison seemed to be an expert on them. The following are just a few:
“Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.” Thomas A. Edison
“Negative results are just what I want. They’re just as valuable to me as positive results. “I can never find the thing that does the job best until I find the ones that don’t.” Thomas A. Edison
“Just because something doesn’t do what you planned it to do doesn’t mean it’s useless.” Thomas A. Edison
“You build on failure. You use it as a stepping stone. Close the door on the past. You don’t try to forget the mistakes, but you don’t dwell on it. You don’t let it have any of your energy, or any of your time, or any of your space.” – Johnny Cash
“Take chances, make mistakes. That’s how you grow. Pain nourishes your courage. You have to fail in order to practice being brave.” – Mary Tyler Moore
“Creativity is allowing yourself to make mistakes. Art is knowing which ones to keep.” – Scott Adams
“Success does not consist in never making mistakes but in never making the same one a second time.” – George Bernard Shaw
“Experience is simply the name we give our mistakes.” – Oscar Wilde
“I hope that in this year to come, you make mistakes. Because if you are making mistakes, then you are making new things, trying new things, learning, living, pushing yourself, changing yourself, changing your world. You’re doing things you’ve never done before, and more importantly, you’re doing something.” – Neil Gaiman
“The more you do the more mistakes you make.” – So true! Thanks for sharing this during A-Z April.