Artem BorisovOne of iPEC’s Foundation Principles states: “You cannot make a mistake”. I like this principle. For me it means that one can treat all her experiences as learning opportunities that help moving forward. Here, however, could be one glitch.
In my coaching practice we often talk with clients about mistakes and its magnitudes. And I share my personal perspective on mistakes. For me, there are two types of mistakes. Type 1 mistakes give you a learning opportunity, type 2 mistakes kill you, sometimes – literally.
Personally, I love mistakes of the first type. My own mistakes provide me with a very deep experience that cannot be substituted with that when I observe how other people do something wrong. I feel all its nuances and know precisely how to perform differently next time. So, its value is great.
With type 2 mistakes the story is different. One should avoid doing it. Sometimes its consequences are dire and irreversible. Consider the following joke.
A man comes to a bar and orders two glasses of beer, one – of regular size, the second – of the size of a thimble. When a barman brings two beers, the man takes out a tiny little man of his pocket, gives him a thimble beer, summons everyone in the bar and asks the tine man: Now, John, tell to these guys how you did say “F… you!” to a warlock!
That is not a kind of experience that you might want. Probably, it is not worthwhile to tell rude words to a warlock 😊 With that being said, usually people find it is useful to look at their personal perspective through these lenses: what could give them a learning experience, and what could ruin some of their opportunities. It is a kind of Antifragility test for self, which could be quite relevant during a challenging COVID time as well. (Thank you, Nassim Nicholas Taleb, for introducing out of the box concept of Antifragility!)
