Making vs. Making Mistakes

Making things/stuff/events/experiences/products/whatever is generally regarded, on an abstract level, as a good thing.

“I want to make the next Facebook!”

“I’m going to start the next Harlem Shake sensation.”

“I can build a better set of cooking utensils.”

The aura of creation in 2015 is all around us. Anyone can code an app without knowing any code whatsoever. Anyone can write chapters that dovetail famous books and find an audience of thousands without spending dime.

It’s so easy, right?

Wrong.

Making is 80%+ making mistakes and that doesn’t get as much airtime as the last 20% where the making actually makes something worthwhile.

The most valuable skill anyone can garner from making is learning to make mistakes and move on. Move forward. Keep making.

Our schools and their rigid test, baby, test mentality leave almost no room for that mistake making process. Scantrons don’t have a box to show your work. There isn’t extra credit given on the SAT. Why not?

Wouldn’t it make sense to reward someone who did it wrong then went above and beyond the call of duty to figure it out?

Wouldn’t it make sense to structure every class, test, assignment with built in extra credit opportunities?

It’d sure real mirror life a little more closely where everything contains an extra credit opportunity.