Old Message, New Messenger - Part 3: When We Know Better We DO Better

‘Perfection’ is an impossible attainment. Some think the journey toward it raises the bar in a way that accepting average never could. Others scowl at perfection with disdain. I think we can all agree on one thing, mistakes help us learn.

A detailed directive toward success can be less impactful that a personal experience of failure, lessons learned and a new approach toward better results. As a child, I was taught to try, and if the task went wrong, put the lessons learned into improving the results for the next attempt. That teaching carried over to my career, where I followed the mantra, “better to make a mistake, and learn than do nothing at all”. My Dad used to say, “Nothing ventured, nothing gained” – which always reminded me that success would never be possible without taking a risk.

In the last few years there has been a lot of talk about a Maya Angelou quote; “when we know better we do better”. The first time I heard it, the statement felt like permission to let go any past guilt of wrong paths taken. I soon realised, it was not a new message for me. It was the same message instilled in me as a child, the mantra of my career building and yet the message had become so common in my life it had somehow lost its impact and ability to alter my consciousness.

Sometimes it takes a new messenger, with a uniquely crafted lesson, to help us listen - even when we have heard it a thousand time before.

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