The blessing of mistakes

"Don't be afraid to make a mistake, your readers might like it." - William Randolph Hearst

One of the ways I try to affect people in a positive way is to write and send a free inspirational e-mail message each day to a list of subscribers.

I am uncertain of just how many of my e-mail subscribers were bombarded with one of my messages recently. I understand that some people received it as many as 40 times.

Clearly, there had been a mistake made by one of the technicians who maintains our website, and I extended my deepest apologizes for any inconvenience it may have caused my readers. Out of several thousand subscribers, I received a good number of responses informing me of the problem.

Most of them were lighthearted, while a few of them were very "expressive" of their discontent over the inconvenience it had caused, and several even asked to unsubscribe.

It is amazing how life continues be a magnificent mirror, reflecting back to us exactly that which we project. To this, I quote Nelson Boswell, who wrote, "The difference between greatness and mediocrity is often how an individual views a mistake."

At first, even I was more than a bit upset with our web manager. Then, one morning at 4 a.m., I got it. My view shifted: This wasn't about him; it was about my reaction to his "mistake."

This has been an interesting opportunity for me to practice what I preach. I invite you to see what value it holds for you as well.

The problem happened because I had requested the website manager to seek a new method so that the daily e-mail message could be sent out more efficiently.

In other words, there would have been no problem at all if I had been willing to continue doing things in the manner in which they had always been done.

However, what I've discovered over the years is that if I always do what I have always done, I will always get what I have always gotten.

It's not my way to settle for mediocrity if a better way to do something can be discovered. The operative word here for me is "discovered."

Too often, we choose to settle for the status quo because of the risk involved with new discoveries.

We fear we may make a "mistake" venturing outside our box, and so we settle in for the long run, living our lives with an inner knowing that there is something greater awaiting us beyond our comfort zone.

It woos us, inviting us to move forward into the unknown where anything is possible, including making mistakes . . . so we hold back. The belief is that mistakes are a bad thing.

The reality is that a person who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new. Yes, it is safer not to make any mistakes, but that means we have to live small, restricted, redundant and unrewarding lives, which is not what you and I were sent here to do. We have been sent here to grow and evolve consciously, to expand our horizons.

A fear of making mistakes drastically limits those horizons, doesn't it?

Well, it's easy to stop making mistakes: Just stop having ideas, stop growing- stop living. If you don't find this an acceptable choice, then I invite you to take a step out of your comfort zone and welcome your mistakes. It is proof you are alive.

So, I am glad that our web manager made the mistake- it wasn't his first, and I pray it won't be his last. It's proof he is doing his job, seeking new and better ways that allow me to connect with you more efficiently. Our mistakes can be the bridge between inexperience and wisdom.

May each bridge you cross be meaningful to you on this amazing journey called life. It's all good.

If you would like to subscribe to my daily email message list, just go to www.OneSpirit.org. I apologize beforehand for any future "mistakes."

Dennis Merritt Jones is the spiritual director for OneSpirit Center for Conscious Living in Simi Valley. His website is www.OneSpirit.org.