Most of us fear making mistakes. We don’t want to be revealed as one who doesn’t have it all figured out. Isn’t it much better for the world to see our perfect selves doing things perfectly in a shiny package? That’s what social media is all about, right?
However, none of us have it all together. What is it about ourselves that fears we’ll be found out as flawed, yet thinks everyone else is perfect? All of us are afraid of making a mistake, especially in public.
This fear keeps us from doing anything worthwhile. It keeps us in line and ensures we won’t do much of value. We forget that the successful fail.
Should we be intentionally making mistakes? No, instead we can learn to overcome the fear that paralyzes us. For example, Harvard Business Review has a good article on how to manage this fear. One great tip is using “emotional agility skills.” We can acknowledge our fear and state them out loud, acknowledge what is true, then use our values to think of some possible actions to take.
Striving for perfection can paralyze us. All of us make mistakes at one time or another and it is okay. It is better to move forward and make mistakes along the way than to strive for a perfect, unattainable standard.
