Mistakes are part of life

Even though mistakes are part of life, we singles can turn them into a torture tool if we're not careful.

First, most people get very upset when they make a mistake, and second, we singles especially have a tendency to beat ourselves up over them instead of learning an important lesson.

Yep. There it is again, that problem of replaying upsetting episodes over and over. When you live alone and have lots of time to think, that's an easy habit to form. Not so easy to break.

So how should we handle mistakes? Given that they're inevitable, how can we get the greatest benefit out of them instead of being unnecessarily sidetracked?

Perfectionism is unrealistic

Let's all learn a lesson from one of my past bosses, who I'll call Louise. Louise was a perfectionist and expected all of her staff to be perfect too.

Unfortunately for her, we were human beings, not robots. Human beings make mistakes. Whether it's from stress, overwork, lack of concentration, or a dozen other conditions that affect the mind, we goof up. We don't want to, but it happens.

Louise came down on us like a ton of bricks whenever she caught typos in our editing work. I'm dating myself, but this was in the days before spellcheck—a long time ago. When we were proofreading a document, sometimes a typo would slip by.

After one of these humiliating chew-outs, I and my coworkers would resolve to ourselves that we'd do better so we wouldn't have to go through that again. But you know what? As hard as we tried, we couldn't be perfect, like Louise wanted us to be.

Yeah, maybe if we'd had unlimited time to go over those reports again and again and again, we could have ferreted out every misspelling or misplaced comma. But we were on deadlines. There was always new work coming in, and we couldn't afford to get backed up.

The result? Louise had a revolving door in her department. Workers knew they'd never be perfect and got sick of being shamed when they weren't. So they left, as I did.

The lesson? Do your absolute best to do excellent work. Hold yourself to high standards and strive for constant improvement. if you work in finance, the medical profession, law enforcement, entertainment, or the military, you want to have zero errors.

Knowing that mistakes are a part of life is not an excuse to be careless. But only one person I know of never made a mistake—and he was also God. Later we'll look at tips to decrease mistakes.

Mistakes are part of life: So is sin

Sin is a mistake. It's always a mistake, even though it may feel good at the time. In short, sin is any action that is outside the will of God for you.

We learn to recognize sin by reading the Bible and acquainting ourselves with God's character. He gave us the Ten Commandments as a core overview of what to avoid.

Just as mistakes are part of life, so are sins. Even after a person becomes a Christian, they still have a sinful nature that is bent toward evil. When we do sin, God tells us to confess it to him, repent (turn away from it), and ask his forgiveness.

God always forgives a sincere sinner. Not every mistake is a sin, but every sin is a mistake. We can't think some sins are allowable. The Bible makes clear that God takes sin seriously.

When it comes to mistakes that are not sins, actions that are simply unwise choices that don't offend God, we can't let those mistakes paralyze us.

We can't be so afraid of being wrong that we don't do anything. Life is uncertain, yes. We can't always know the outcome of our decisions ahead of time, but we can do our homework. We can prepare for the consequences, and select the wisest alternative.

And there's a key for people who keep repeating the same mistake: actions do have consequences. If you get plastered in the evening and are late for work the next morning, it's a pretty safe bet that if you don't want to be late for work (and possibly lose your job), you need to quit getting plastered. This actually happened to a coworker of mine, an alcoholic. But it can be any risky behavior.

Some outcomes are pretty easy to anticipate.

Mistakes can teach us to slow down, pay attention, and be more cautious in whom we trust. Mistakes are stepping stones to maturity. Ignore their lessons and you'll be childish forever. And who wants that?

How to cut down on mistakes

After 30 years in the workplace and taking care of my own home, I've learned a few common-sense lessons on avoiding mistakes.

Often it's a question of concentration. Focus on the task at hand. Be observant. Take your time, if possible. Call up past experience, if you have any, on doing the same kind of task. If it's some job that's new to you, you can often find an instructional video on YouTube. Those are priceless when it comes to carpentry and home maintenance.

Know what you don't know, and know when to call in a professional. I can do some plumbing jobs, but when it's above my pay grade, I call a plumber. Believe me, it's well worth the money to engage somebody who knows exactly what they're doing.

When it comes to making decisions, consult wise friends, especially people who have already handled what you're contemplating. Never be embarrassed to ask for help or advice.

Here are a few tips for reducing errors:

Follow instructions accurately. Work slowly and methodically, if possible.
Use checklists when time allows.  
Double-check your work before turning it in.  
Ask a fellow worker to review your work for errors, if possible.
Do your research and homework before making a major decision.   
Try to think ahead to the consequences of decisions.

Mistakes are part of life, but we should never become complacent or satisfied with less than our best effort. From making dinner to choosing a spouse, concentration and preparation can go a long way toward a happy result.   

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