What do you have in your pockets or in your bag right now?
Some loose change? A set of keys? A receipt or two? Your wallet? Maybe your phone?
What if you lost that stuff? What would happen?
You’d probably worry about it, fret about it or maybe curse like a drunk dock-worker. You might be upset that you lost some of your stuff. You’d sigh as you realise you have to get going replacing it all.
But what about you? What impact does this have on you, other than some momentary frustration?
None whatsoever.
When it gets to the bigger stuff, like a car, a friend, a house, a job, a partner or your health, the stakes get a little higher and the frustration, anger and hurt can grow to match.
But there you are, in the middle of it all, going through it one second at a time.
Hurt when you hurt and miss what you miss, but don’t for any one of those seconds think that you’re any less or any worse as a result.
Instinct will urge you to cling to the hurt of what you’ve lost as a way to keep it close and keep the past alive, but the only thing that brings is the diminishing of your self and the growth of fear.
You have the right to make mistakes, lose everything and start again
It’s actually kind of a miracle if you think about it; a right that lets you experiment and a right as essential as breathing or free speech, but a right that’s pulled back from out of fear.
I hope you flourish and I want the best for you. But the only thing to be afraid of—with genuine, heart-stopping fear—is that you go through your life as if this right wasn’t yours, as if losing everything would see life standing over you, pressing its boot down onto your beaten chest, and that it would be that way forever.
You have the right to make mistakes, lose everything and start again.
How does that feel?
This was a great article. I agree that we have a right to make mistakes; the issue is, though, that any action has a consequence(s) and an outcome(s) have a perception from others as they ‘view’ it and of course the, truth.
The fact of matter, is, that actions which are deemed ‘failure’ are likely to have on going consequences; such as starting a business, pouring your life and soul into it; to see it fail and then to be treated cynically by industry peers when trying to look for work. Or taking action to help others which lead to a diminished ability of oneself, after all we all have thresh-holds don’t we? are you going to be seen as a hero, a fool or simply incompetent for taking a risk that did not work out…
How will your action be perceived by others? Will they look sympathetically to your mistake, or will they see the error, bad luck or poor outcome as lack of competence, poor judgement or even question your ability to be the person they thought you were. Remember – yep -we have the right to make mistakes and as the stakes rise in the game of life so do the precarious outcomes and the significant negative results from mistakes.
So, we all have the right to lead our lives in any way that we wish though its worth remembering what you are gambling with; is it health, wealth, both? will your decision today be a regrettable one tomorrow, next week or next year?
If you lose wealth, health and material possessions how will you feel about not being able to regain them. Once something is lost it can be, actually, very difficult to regain and recover. Sometimes there is no turning back….