I am well acquainted with mistake-making and have learned a lot in the past quarter-century. Among the most valuable lessons, I learned to draw upon the experiences and mistakes of others to avoid a lot of pitfalls in my life (but don't be fooled: I am not void of repeating others' mistakes, I simply try to avoid them).
My life, especially in recent years, has been one of learning and change. As far back as I can remember, I've always excelled with learning anything that was even remotely interesting to me: In Grade 1, I read whole starter books, by myself, in under one-tenth the time it took most kids, even with parental aid; in high school, I finished all my computers class assignments half way through the semester and played video games the remainder of the time; in college/university, it took me a fraction of the time to do programming assignments, leaving more time to pursue my own fancies. However, this gift for learning came at a price.
I suffered from the popular curse of a lack of friends. While proving to be a huge stumbling block in my social development, the fewer distractions also made for fewer significant academic challenges. Sadly, it also meant that I'd not learn the importance of applying oneself in educational endeavours until many years later.
Some of my biggest mistakes have led to the biggest lessons learned in my life. Here, I will discuss a few of the mistakes that have had the greatest impact on my life. Don't worry, though, this isn't going to be a big confessional of all the bad things I've done; afterall, mistakes are not always "bad" or "wrong":
Speaking before thinking - Lacking the ability to adequately express thoughts and feelings, I've offended numerous people over the years. Almost without exception, it was when offense was not intended.
Though still a challenge today, this area has improved significantly in recent years. Through my experiences with taming the running of my mouth, I've developed an increased sensitivity towards others and have learned to filter and phrase my speech in a much more diplomatic and "politically correct" fashion.
Selling pest control - This was a big lesson for me. I went to Nashville, TN to sell pest control. It only took 36 hours to realize the mistake I had made. This resulted in burning up 11 days of my summer (including driving time) and nearly all of my cash.
Having made it home with a reaffirmation that money provides me with nominal motivation, I also learned that I cannot achieve financial wealth if I neglect my mental health (i.e. Don't try crazy stuff like that when you're depressed!).
One poor choice - More than any other decision in life, one choice taught me a great deal. This poor choice was to marry when I was immature, spiritually unstable, and didn't feel like a whole person. This resulted in selecting a marriage that struggled, increasingly and continuously, until it ended in a painful divorce. What should have been the most fulfilling relationship in life instead degraded into bitter contention and anger.
As healing came through the atoning power of Christ, I came to learn many lessons from that experience. Over 2 years later, that trial still provides weekly, if not daily, lessons for my life. The most prominent of the lessons I've learned from this episode is that relationships cannot endure all their trials without communication, cooperation and trust. Also, common ground (or lack thereof) in Faith and values will make (or break) a relationship, in time.I'm not so naive as to say that my experiences are truly unique and I'm not saying they're greater than any one else's trials and experience. I am, however, bold enough in my words to say that for one to have an open mind and willingness to learn from one's experiences will make all the difference in his/her life - it certainly has in mine!
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