The Unexpected Foundation of Your Next Big Win
We spend half our lives terrified of making the wrong move. We agonise over options, procrastinate on projects we had set out to do, and hesitate to speak up—all because we are afraid of making a “bad decision.”
But if you look at the anatomy of high achievers, you realize that avoiding mistakes is actually the fastest way to avoid success.
Let’s break down the Success Equation:
- Success comes from making Good Decisions.
- Good Decisions come from Wisdom.
- Wisdom comes from Experience.
- Experience comes from Past Bad Decisions.
Therefore: Your bad decisions are the foundation of your future success.
If you are currently cringing over a mistake you made last week or a failure from last year, stop right now. You are looking at it wrong. You aren’t looking at a loss; you are looking at raw data.
A “bad” decision only stays bad if you bury it in shame. If you study it, it becomes experience.
Once it becomes experience, it transforms into wisdom. And that wisdom is the only thing that will get you the win next time.
You cannot hack the process. You have to walk through the bad stuff to get to the good stuff.
Your Quick Win: The “Mistake Audit”
Don’t let your past stumbles go to waste. Mine them like you’re mining for gold.
The Task:
Take 5 minutes today to write down one specific “bad decision” you made recently that still bothers you.
Below it, answer these two questions:
- What is the one specific piece of knowledge I have now that I didn’t have before I made this choice?
- How will I use this new “data” to make a smarter choice next time?
Once you answer those, cross out the words “Bad Decision” and write “Tuition Paid” next to it.
You’ve earned the wisdom—now go use it.