The Ideas Blog

Learning from your mistakes is essential if you want to live a happy, healthy and fulfilling life.  It’s also really helpful if you can learn from other people’s mistakes too - but it’s essential (as a minimum) that you learn from your own past errors.
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A 60 year old kid?

I overheard two people speaking last week, as I was waiting to be served at my favourite lunch spot.  One commented to the other that there were some road works planned, for the main route between where she lived and where she worked.

She then extolled; “well, I’ll just have to tell the boss to expect me in fifteen minutes late, while they are working on the road!”

The person speaking was not a child or even a young adult - but a lady in her late fifties or more!

However, she seemed to be either unaware (or totally disinterested) in the fact that she was displaying a child-like attitude to responsibility.  As far as she was concerned, the correct way to deal with the road works, was to pass the problem over to her employer - rather than take responsibility and just leave home fifteen minutes earlier.

I was not remotely surprised when she THEN went on to complain at the fact that her income had not increased in years; “even though prices have increased so much lately!”  I’m guessing her boss doesn’t have her name at the top of the list for promotions or raises!.
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Repeating the same mistakes

Wisdom only comes with age, if you learn from past experiences.  That way, the more experiences you have, the more you learn and the wiser you become.  Otherwise, age has no value.  Just ‘ticking another year off’ doesn’t make you any wiser by itself.

Sadly, for many people, the first day of January is not the start of a new year - it’s simply the chance to re-live the same old year over and over and over again!  They moan about their situation, like the person in the above example, yet they do nothing to make their situation better.  They complain - but stay the same!
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The inoculation theory of education

The solution is to make sure that you don’t subscribe to ‘the inoculation theory of education’.  This is the theory that says when ‘the average person’ leaves school or university, they treat their qualifications or graduation as an inoculation against ever having to learn anything ever again.  Sure, they say things like; “You’re never too old to learn”, but it’s just lip service - it’s the right thing to say - however, they don’t actually believe it.
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Cause and effect

Everything you do will generate some form of feedback - what scientists call cause and effect. If you don’t like your effects (your income, relationships and everything else are ‘effects’) you simply need to change what you are doing (everything you do is a ’cause.’)

You have the power to improve every element of your life - so long as you learn from your mistakes and don’t simply repeat them.

As Einstein once said; “insanity is doing the same thing over and over - and expecting different results!”

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Don’t waste time complaining about your problems, do something now and proactively direct the path of your future!