Long back, I had a team member on one of my client engagements who was literally a master of mistakes. So much so that it almost cost us the business with that client.
The harrowing experience of dealing with that situation temporarily made me intolerant of mistakes.
I have long recovered from that unhealthy syndrome. And in the process, have evolved my own little philosophy on this topic:
1] Making mistakes is one of the many ways to learn, but not the only way. Definitely not the most efficient way. It shouldn't be glorified.
2] In any worthwhile endeavour, you can not completely avoid mistakes. Chasing perfection is the utopia of the fool. Learning to weigh the trade-offs of your mistakes - before you commit them - is a life skill.
3] There is a price that you must pay for your mistakes. Treat this as an investment in pursuit of better outcomes. But do ensure that you make mistakes that are affordable to you.
4] Any mistake that has the potential to completely wipe out your life, money, or reputation is better avoided, however large the lure of potential pay-off.
5] Not learning from past mistakes is a bigger and avoidable mistake. It's akin to not squeezing the benefits of your investments.
#lifelearnings #experience #mistakes