I’m so excited to share today’s episode with you, because it’s about something really big: how to embrace your mistakes as lessons instead of running from them. This is one of the most important skills you can ever learn. Making a mistake is a huge source of fear for so many people. In fact, it’s the most common thing that holds people back and keeps them stuck.

Today, we’ll talk about how to stop running from mistakes and reframe the way that you look at mistakes in your own life. Because there are no mistakes, only lessons!

Sometimes I feel like my entire life has been nothing but a series of wrong turns. I dropped out of high school to go to Holland (but managed to get accepted to college anyway). But then I dropped out of college too. I got married at age 20, and ended up divorced at 22. I attempted suicide multiple times, and found myself deeply in debt with very few options. And that’s just the beginning!

But every single wrong turn has led me to where I am right now, and every misstep has eventually led to the right step.

Unfortunately, that’s the kind of thing that’s easy to see in hindsight but really difficult to see in the moment. Even when you know that there are only lessons, the fear of making a mistake can still hold you back and prevent you from taking action. So how can we lean into the belief that it’s okay to mess up and make mistakes?

Get started by using these three simple steps, which I’ll explore in depth in today’s episode:
1. Reframe your perception.
2. Understand that you’re in good company, because everyone makes mistakes.
3. Know in your heart of hearts that there is actually a fate worse than failure.

Don’t miss this episode! We all struggle sometimes with the fear of making mistakes, but reframing and getting past that fear can truly help you create a life you love.

Highlights

[01:25] – Welcome back to the podcast! Ruth explains what today’s powerful episode will be about.
[05:02] – Ruth gives listeners a quick overview of ways in which her life looks like a series of wrong turns.
[09:34] – Something that Ruth has realized along the way is that there are no mistakes, only lessons, she explains.
[13:32] – Ruth points out that it’s easy to believe in theory that there are only lessons, but it’s not always easy to see it in the moment.
[14:13] – How do you lean into the belief that it’s okay to screw up sometimes, and approach opportunities as a chance to grow instead of worrying about messing up?
[14:45] – The first step in embracing this attitude in your life is to reframe your perception, Ruth explains.
[17:26] – Ruth explains the second step in her system for overcoming the fear of making mistakes.
[21:20] – Step 3 is the most important of all: knowing in your heart of hearts that there is actually a fate worse than failure.
[25:09] – After surveying over 4,000 people, the one thing that stands out to Ruth most is the unrelenting pain of regret.
[27:11] – Ruth recaps the steps you can take to start embracing your mistakes as lessons instead of seeing them as catastrophes.
[28:34] – Ruth invites listeners to get in touch with her either by email at ruth@livingwellspendingless.com or on Instagram.