Mistakes: Pure Gold

Yesterday, one of my students was reading out loud from The Talent Code during her Listening Fitness session and I was reminded of the importance of mistakes in the process of Deep Practice. 

Fear of making mistakes is a sure sign that the ego is in control.  When the ego is in control it tells us that making a mistake proves:

• We are not good at the thing we want to do

• We are never going to be good at it

• We are not a good person

• We are lame or a loser

No wonder we try to avoid making mistakes like the plague.  But in order to take back our joy of learning we only need to realize that mistakes are where the gold is.  Without them we have nothing to correct, no new edge of a new skill that needs to be wrapped in myelin and our practice can become stale.  

I have noticed when I’m doing deep practice that there is a strong feeling that this time and this process are all mine.  It is my interest, my curiosity, my desire that are driving the experience and being served. The practice continuously evolves from my interest, and my interest is piqued the most when I make “mistakes”.  Each time I practice I find new things coming into my awareness and that keeps it fresh and fascinating.

So, don’t let your ego steal the fun of discovering your gold, your mistakes!