Mistake Your Way to Success: Picture Books About the Growth Mindset
When I was ten, I decided to build an airplane in my parents’ garage. For research, I went to my school’s library and checked out all the books on airplanes.
I read and read. I picked a stump from the woodpile and nailed a piece of blue polka-dotted fabric to it. This would have been the stepping stool to climb into my airplane, but that’s as far as I made it.
It turns out building an airplane is hard. Also you need more than scrap lumber and nails to finish the job. Shocking news to ten-year-old me.
Looking back, it’s easy to see the flaws in my plan, but was my attempt wasted?
Not completely.
I learned a lot about planes. Years later, I majored in engineering with an emphasis in transportation. Ten-year-old me would have approved.
Not every project takes flight. Some beautiful polka-dotted stools leave us stepping into nothingness. In these times, it can be tempting to think the work was all a waste.
Not so!
Failure spelled backwards is experience.
Read that last line again and look at the subject line of this post.
This post is all about taking risks and making mistakes as a pathway to moving forward. Me included!
Comedian Hannah Berner jokes about being a lazy perfectionist. Lazy perfectionists keep projects pristine by never starting them in the first place. Effective but unproductive.
What’s the opposite of a lazy perfectionist?
A hardworking sloth.
Over the years, I’ve decided that it’s better to do something than nothing—even if that means moving slowly and making mistakes.
I wanted to be a hardworking sloth. I needed to go for it!
My challenge for you is for you to make mistake of your own. Maybe…
Sing along to a song you don’t really know
Attempt one of those Tik-Tok dances
Fix something around the house with duct tape
Write a new rough draft
Hit send on a query
You don’t have to report back to me on this. This is just for you. It’s an exercise to help you choose joy over perfection—good enough over never. Do something today that stretches you...at least a little. Re-energize your creativity.
I’m not saying lower your standards. Be ambitious with your goals but patient with your progress.
Build strong and long. Be a hardworking sloth.
Need more inspiration? You’ll find a list of some of my favorite picture books about the beauty of making mistakes linked in this post.
Until next month, happy reading, and do something today that scares you!
