By: Colby Harris, Grit.org Staff
Heading into the new year I have set a goal to only look forward. I do not want to waste even a half a second worrying about the past- past mistakes, past occurrences, past successes- 2022 is a year of looking forward. The hardest time to remain present and not dwell on the past is when you have just plainly missed your mark. This could come in many fashions and happens in all walks of life. A few examples would be having too many turnovers in a basketball game, eating bad food when you were supposed to be dieting, or even failing to put together a project you were in charge of at work. To help you bounce back quicker from these minor failures -or happy mistakes as Bob Ross would say- I want to share with you all what I call “The 3 R system”. This has been very effective for me over the last two years and I will continue to strive to use it through 2022. Let's dive right into the 3 R’s and how you can use the same system I do to move past mistakes while in the face of adversity.
R #1- Recognize
Something I have preached a lot of over the last 2 years is self awareness and its importance to being an above average individual. It takes a hyper self awareness of your own actions, reactions, and self talk to address mistakes and downfalls so you can learn from those mishaps rather than dwell on them. The first step to overcoming a mistake and bouncing back is recognizing that you missed your mark. If you don’t have the humility to accept your own failure then you will never reach your full potential. As soon as you recognize your mistake you can learn from it and begin formulating your plan on how you will better prepare yourself for that next assignment, that next opportunity, or that very next play.
R #2- Reevaluate
So now you have seen that you made a mistake or you didn't fulfill your goals. The dwelling is over and it is now time to dissect the situation and find where you failed. This is where extreme growth comes. The lessons to be learned are hidden within the problem and you have to break down the scenario to figure out what that lesson is. At this time, you have to remind yourself that there is no such thing as mistakes, just happy accidents. Can you imagine what society would be like if we got everything right the first try? Don’t get down on yourself for making happy accidents. Once you have found the root of your problem and what led you to falling off the right path, it's time to strap your boots up and get back to it.
R #3- Retry
The last step is to revisit the challenge, and come out victorious. You have recognized that you initially missed your mark, you have reevaluated your game plan, and now its time to retry. Try, try, and try, and retry again, until you crack the code. Technically it could be the 4 R system! Finishing off with Reuse. You can reuse the 3 R system for any scenario and implement it as many times as it takes! Once you have made the first step of recognizing your mistake then you have not only moved one step closer to reaching your goal or completing your project, but you learned something in the process. In 2022, take each and every failure, tribulation, or “happy mistake” as an opportunity to learn. Focus your attention on the process you went through to end up in that position. Do not have a pity party and force your attention to the negative feelings and situation you found yourself in. From there you can reevaluate and retry until you overcome the task at hand. Implement the 3 R system next time you find yourself let down with the outcome of a situation.
Colby running a birthday party this past weekend (pictured below)
