Scared of making mistakes?

30 Sep 2022, 3:00 AM By Charisma Rossilia

Everyone is bound to make mistakes - even perfectionists. Instead of punishing yourself for it, learn how to get over the fear and use the experience instead to make wiser choices

Perfectionism is really the enemy for most people. To look or act flawlessly in front of others, when really you’re not feeling quite sure about yourself and worry you may make a mistake, looking incompetent instead! But you know what, that constant pressure to want to do better can actually backfire on you instead, causing you to make even more mistakes - or worse, miss out on opportunities and chances simply because you’re too afraid to try.

How do we overcome this fear? Here are some tips.

1. Focus on your progress
A small progress is still progress. Repeat after us! Everyone’s progress is different and that’s the nature of life. Without making any mistakes, you will never progress in life because you are not giving yourself the opportunity to learn.

2. Failures can turn into successes
For real! Use every mistake you make as a learning opportunity. Determine what went wrong and come up with a solution. Keep trying until you find the right solution. That’s really how you get to success!

3. Let go
You can’t change the past. You can’t rewind and start life all over again. So rather than dwell on the mistakes you’ve made and worry you may make new ones, move forward to create a better present and future. Don’t listen to negative thoughts. Tell yourself you are doing your best every day and that’s all that matters.

4. Set small goals
These small goals ought to be a little tough, but not impossible. Consider achieving these goals as “early wins” that will make you feel more confident. You don’t always have to look at the end picture. Follow the flow, achieve your small goals, and that will eventually lead you to creating bigger goals for yourself.

Photo by Varvara Grabova on Unsplash

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