What if you screw up? Making mistakes is part of life, right?
I’m sure everyone knows the famous adage “measure twice, cut once.” This applies literally—think carpentry, sewing—and figuratively, when planning carefully before taking actions that are irreversible.
I actually think I measure four times before cutting something important—this likely dates back to my model-making days when I majored in Architecture & Urban Planning before medical school.
Sometimes overthinking things can be quite limiting. If you try to plan for all the potential downsides of doing something, you may never do it at all.
I find that my creative energies are most active when I stop planning. Being in the moment—truly savoring the here and the now—is freeing in many ways: no expectations to live up to, no preconceived ideas, no guilt or shame, no fear.
A big part of this is that laughter and joy often ensue. It’s so important to see the humor in things, and to revel in discovery.
So, on a recent business trip to Boston, I had to laugh at the crazy bathroom setup in my hotel room. This picture is of the actual bathtub shower stall. It was a fixed piece (not a sliding door), covering only half of the tub area closest to the showerhead.
At first glance it appears fine, until you look closer—yup, you can see a round hole, about 10 inches in diameter. That’s a large space that water splashes through while you are showering. After a shower, the floor is covered in water—thank goodness for extra towels!
I’ll never know if this was intentional or if someone screwed up. Did they think this was a cool way to access the faucet to turn the shower on or off while still outside the tub? This was a large hotel, so I can only assume that all rooms had the same configuration.
I find it hilarious that this error wasn’t ever corrected. Maybe nobody has noticed? So, I guess it wasn’t actually considered a screw up?
In the words of Al Pacino in Scent of a Woman (1992), “No mistakes in the tango, darling, not like life. It’s simple. That’s what makes the tango so great. If you make a mistake, get all tangled up, just tango on.”
And, because we all loved this scene from the movie, click here to watch it again!
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Susan J. Baumgaertel, MD is an internal medicine physician who provides telemedicine medical consultation and advocacy support for patients in WA state. Find her at myMDadvocate.
Her book, The Menopause Menu, is an all-in-one giftbook, medical guide and recipe book for navigating menopause.