Celebrate Mistakes
The only way to really grow in life, is to push yourself to the point where you make a mistake.
The point when you’re so tired you slow down.
When it’s too hard, so you give up.
When you get embarrassed because you did it wrong.
When you’re frustrated because you have to do it again.
If you are getting it right every time, then you are not doing your best. Your best should be a point where you are growing and pushing beyond yourself and it’s impossible to do that without making mistakes.
Mistakes should not be something we avoid; mistakes should be something we celebrate.
The celebration of mistakes has made its way into the workforce under the umbrella of psychological safety. Amy Edmonson, who coined the term, commented in an interview for Standford Business, "psychological safety refers to a belief that you can speak up candidly with interpersonally risky content like I made a mistake, or I need help, or I disagree with your point of view." She then goes on to say that psychological safety is often misunderstood for meaning "comfortable or not having high standards." But this is simply not true.
Creating a space that allows for mistakes is, by definition, creating a space that is psychologically safe, and when workers feel high levels of psychological safety, research shows there are many benefits including finding more meaning in their work, being more confident in their CEO, and overall better mental health.
While psychological safety at work is often talked about, I don't hear it much when referring to how we talk to ourselves. We need to create a psychologically safe place in our own minds that allows us to acknowledge mistakes, celebrate the fact that we tried something hard, and then take the time to learn from it.
Take a look back on the month you’ve had and instead of celebrating wins, I want you to celebrate new mistakes. Celebrate the times you put yourself out there; the times you tried; the times you tested your limits. This year when you set goals for yourself, make them big enough that the path to success is paved with new mistakes.
