Being Wrong
I hate being wrong and admitting it. I always want to be right. It’s one of my major defects of character. I think that admitting I’m wrong negates my self-worth and lovability.
I am working hard to change that.
The voice teacher at Interlochen told me I had a pitch problem. I cried and cried. “I’m a bad singer. I always be bad.” This is black-and-white catastrophic thinking, which is very typical of someone with low self-esteem.
I used to vibe my students out when they would catch me being wrong. There I was trying so hard to teach them something and they have to needle me with what I was doing wrong.
Now I openly admit to my students when I’m wrong. For example, we are in orchestra and I’m playing my cello, and I’ll make a mistake. “Sorry guys, my bad . Let’s do it again for me,” I’ll say to them.
Then I forgive myself for judging myself for not being good enough. Making and admitting to mistakes makes me human to them and I think they respect me for it.
I’ve been known to seek a student out and apologize if I felt I offended them or vibed them out in some way. I think it helps our student-teacher relationship. It builds trust and respect.
I am trying to get better at admitting my mistakes.
This all relates to my perfectionism.
Juliet’s Positive Affirmations related to being wrong include:
- It’s okay for me to make mistakes. It’s okay to be human.
Wright, J. Everything Is My Fault (Pownal, VT: Hidden Angel Publishing, 2012) p. 254-255.
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