Quess what?

If you don't make mistakes, you're not working on hard enough problems.

And that's a big mistake.

~F. Wikzek

Last week, we had a parent teacher conference and my son's teacher was encouraging him - they had the following conversation:

Teacher: "What are schools for?"

Student: "To learn."

Teacher: "And?"

Student: "to make mistakes."

His teacher concluded by saying:

"if you don't make mistakes then you're not trying hard enough" 

- that phrase stuck with me and has been going through my mind since last week so I decided to release it by sharing it. I also felt it would be a good idea to look up other quotes to supplement his comment and what did I find? The quote above and the ones to follow. Life is a school and we must be courageous enough to try and learn from any mistakes we make. While we do not set out to make mistakes, we must all realize and accept that:

The greatest mistake you can make in life is to be continually fearing you will make one.

~Elbert Hubbard, The Note Book, 1927

The only real mistake is the one from which we learn nothing. ~John Powell

The man who makes no mistakes does not usually make anything. ~Edward Phelps

Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new. ~ Albert Einstein

If a mistake is not a stepping stone, it is a mistake. ~Eli Siegel
 
All men make mistakes, but only wise men learn from their mistakes. ~ Winston Churchill
 
Success seems to be connected with action. successful people keep moving. They make mistakes, but they don't quit. ~ Conrad Hilton (American Hotelier, 1887-1979)
 
Most importantly (and please never forget this one):
Just because you make mistakes doesn't mean you are one. ~Author Unknown

As the year winds down - 21 days to go - I encourage you to look back at (all) the mistakes you (or others) have made in this year and ask yourself, "what did I learn from that?" I believe that we learn one of 2 things from every situation - what to do or what not to do. Then, take one step forward and purpose in your heart how to apply the lessons learned in your life - as you continue to "live life to the fullest."* (thanks Anya B for that phrase).


Reference:
* Attributed to Ernest Hemingway