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.