Make No Mistake About It

I’m going to let you in on a little secret.  I will share with you  a bit of insight.  I am human.  Now you are probably going to roll your eyes and say to yourself, “Well, duh”  “That’s not a secret”. And you would be right.  It’s not a big secret at all.  But, it is what I have embraced as a human that makes this worth sharing.

I make mistakes.  Often.  And finally….it’s okay.  As a matter of fact, after many decades of trying to design a life dedicated to the avoidance of mistakes, I am now ready to welcome them.  I have always lived by the philosophy of no regrets.  I truly love how each part of my life’s journey… the good and the bad… have given me gifts…none of which I would ever want to part with.  And so, I have no regrets.  What I have struggled with is beating myself up over mistakes. Little ones and big ones.  I just read a wonderful blog post by Betty Jean Bell in her blog Love Your Work Life in which she differentiates between ignorance and stupidity.  Her distinctions were elegant.  She quoted Sam Bell who said “Ignorance is optional. Stupidity is not”.  That is how I view the difference between regrets and mistakes.   In looking back over my life’s experiences, I do not regret a single episode…a single road taken.  In looking at my day to day experiences, I stress out over my inability to prevent mistakes.  Until recently.

Taking myself out from behind the dental instruments that had become my identity and diving into a reinvention of myself has been an amazing learning experience.  I went from being a dentist in Park Ridge to a woman passionate about her business and its growth.  And in that passion, I have taken on experiences in marketing and branding and SEO and social media and teaching that I have never before known.  And I am loving it.  And in that passion for new knowledge, growth and new experiences, I am relishing the lessons. Each mistake that I make leads me to a new understanding…to a new level.  It’s akin to playing my new favorite video game, Angry Birds, in a way.    I plan my strategy and keep moving forward knocking down obstacles and then, bang…I fail…I miss my mark.  But, I am addicted and so with renewed energy, I pick myself back up and put my goals back into my site-line and begin knocking down those obstacles again but this time with a better understanding of what NOT to do.  My mistakes are some of my best lessons.  They energize me…they no longer pull me down into a place of self flagellation.  They inspire me…I can’t seem to get enough of all of the new information that I am bombarded with.  They motivate me…I want to grow and as I grow, my knowledge base grows and my business acumen grows and the end result is a better place for you.  And, when all is said and done, that is my goal.  It has always been my goal.  To make Family Dental Care Park Ridge a place that brings to you the best possible dental care, the best possible dentists, and the best possible technology and expertise that is available.  You are part of the reason that I have learned to love my mistakes…they have helped me to make Family Dental Care Park Ridge a better place for you.