Admitting mistakes has become increasingly difficult in today's society. This is a call to embrace the process of recognizing mistakes and why it can be healing to redefine our approach towards perfection and success.
SELF-REFLECTION IS KEY
Is it not rather presumptuous to believe that only others fall victim to propaganda, while we ourselves refuse the mere probability that our own perception of reality may have been influenced? It's intriguing how media manipulation is increasingly evident to a broader audience, yet many of us continue to line up for that dose of negativity every morning. Is it because we are all news junkies? Or can't we believe that too many of our convictions have been challenged in the recent years? Do we prefer to suffer rather than admitting that we are human beings who have our flaws as well? And how are we dealing with facts that contradict our perception of reality in general?
Denial is often the preferred method of handling information that contradicts our beliefs. It is simpler to label someone as a liar than to face uncomfortable truths. Shifting blame onto others is the effortless choice. Accepting and bearing the possibility that we may have been wrong or manipulated is undeniably a more challenging route to take.
EMBRACING MISTAKES AS A MEANS TO GROW
It requires courage, the will of confrontation but most of all: The ability to admit that we are human who sometimes miscalculate, misunderstand and make mistakes. And that is okay. It is not only the most human thing to do, it basically is an invitation for us to heal. Making and reflecting upon mistakes can expand our consciousness. Admitting a wrong-doing or finding out why we need to be perfect can help us unmasking our patterns. It can assist us in closing an open wound which asks for attention, because every emotional reaction is the result of something in our life that hasn't been fully digested. If we are willing to confront these unpleasant moments of truth, we can dismantle a layer of our past pain and therefore heal ourselves.
THE PERFECTION OF BEING PERFECTLY IMPERFECT
The prevalence of Social Media showcasing flawless lives and the advancement of AI have contributed to the challenge of admitting mistakes. The depiction of robots as more efficient and precise than humans only adds to this difficulty. It creates a competitive environment where efficiency and precision are promoted as the ultimate objectives in life.
This is where I completely disagree. From my point of view the recognition of imperfection is part of the human experience. Striving for perfection is not our purpose. I believe our aim should not be perfection, but to embrace our humanity and living according to our hearts and souls rather than function as "programmed" or expected from us. Ultimately, our primary purpose on this planet is to fulfill our karmic journey.
"If we all were enlightened beings there would be no need to be reincarnated."
It can be a relief to remind ourselves that we are doing just fine, dealing with the challenges on the Earth plane. Especially once we realize that learning from so-called "mistakes" presents us with opportunities to grow and to complete the karmic mission we came for. Being mistaken is the most natural trait that exists. Also from a scientific point of view it is the driving force of evolution as mutations can be seen as genetic "errors" leading to new species.
THE TEMPTATION OF BEING PERFECT
I do acknowledge though that perfection never does lose its temptation. Fueled by technological progress promoting the notion of achieving superhuman status the idea of flawlessness comes along. However, this quest is accompanied by the anxiety of making mistakes, and the cost of perfectionism can be substantial.
Perfectionism can drive people to be concerned with achieving unattainable ideals or unrealistic goals that often lead to forms of adjustment problems such as depression, anxiety, ADHD, OCD and low self-esteem. Embracing our humanity and accepting "mistakes" as a part of it, can help us redefining our notion of perfection and being less perfectionist.
"Who cares about perfection? Even the moon is not perfect, it is full of craters. The sea is incredibly beautiful, but salty and dark in the depths. The sky is always infinite, but often cloudy. So, everything that is beautiful isn’t perfect, it’s special. (...) Stop being “perfect”, but try to be free and live, doing what you love, not wanting to impress others."
Bob Marley
Personally, I am familiar with how it feels to always wanting to be perfect. I was raised in a setting where recognition was tied to excelling. It was the most successful strategy to draw attention to myself. Standing out became my default my younger self employed to feel noticed. It worked well till I realized that self-love and self-esteem are NOT bound to any condition nor criteria. A revelation that started my journey towards healing.
I discovered embracing what I used to perceive as "mistakes" as precious tools to being aware of my strategies as an important step of healing myself. It also came along with the redefinition of "success".
“What is success? It is being able to go to bed each night with your soul at peace.“
Paulo Coelho
In this sense I wish you from the bottom of my heart that we all find peace within which will manifest in more peace surrounding us.
Sat Nam!
Good point of view.