Yes, You are R&@%ght!

Yes, You are R&@%ght!

Every time a friend of mine is correct about something, I always say, “Okay, you are raahhhhhh&@%…” and start choking, not able to finish the word!

We laugh, but it’s hard to admit I’m wrong—always. I feel “less than” when I’m not right about something. My father was a perfectionist and needed to be right at the sake of everyone’s happiness.

I don’t want to be as he was but, instead, desire to feel that making a mistake is simply a matter of trying and not hitting the mark.

No one can ever fault you for trying your best. If you don’t know something, it isn’t often your fault, either. Often, you have been fed misinformation and simply kept believing in what you have been fed. Or you just never checked your facts.

Last night, I watched television with a friend. He told me about a TV spokesman who had been taken off the air for beating his wife. He also said that this same man was known to have had affairs with men.

I asked my friend where he had heard this information. He said someone he barely knew shared these facts with him.

I said, “And you believed him and passed the information on to me without checking or verifying it?”

He responded, “Absolutely!”

We, of course, laughed. The honest response is that we all pass on misinformed ideas and thoughts daily without knowing it.

As an editor, my brain always looks at facts with an inquisitive mind. I wonder how someone knew this or that: There was no reference in this text. Where did the facts come from? His or her head? Are these facts simply his observations? Should I be prone to believe what isn’t proven?

I believe we should all try to ask the hard question: Am I right about this? Has the person who told me about this an expert or just sharing the false knowledge he or she knew?

When we are not afraid to be wrong about something, we tend to want the right answer instead of worrying about people thinking we’re ignorant.

I tell the story often about my mother not knowing the meaning of the word monogamous. She wanted so badly for all to think she wasn’t ignorant, that she kept answering questions about her own monogamy with negative answers, making her sound like a big slut. She kept on until my sister said flippantly, “Mom, you don’t know what monogamy means, do you?”

My mother replied wryly, “Well… no!”

We all laughed. Of course, I was relieved as well. I thought my mother was living a double life.

I heard this weekend in a sermon that failing is just a way to show yourself that you have been trying. As a child of a perfectionist, those words resonated with me.

I am okay when I make a mistake. You are perfectly fine when you make a mistake. Righting the wrong information is the important process. Always commit in life to understanding. Be open to receive new information, but always check it. When you do that, you never look stupid or ignorant. You appear to be a seeker and full of wisdom.

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Bo Sebastian is a Hypnotherapist and Life & Health Coach, available for private sessions to QUIT SMOKING, Lose Weight, New Lap-Band Hypnosis for Weight Loss, CHANGE YOUR MIND, CHANGE YOUR LIFE! at 615-400-2334 or www.bosebastian.com.

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