I’m Such a Dork! Sometimes I Can’t Believe the Stupid Things I Do

I’m such a dork! I do so many stupid things and make so many stupid mistakes. I asked my family for some examples for this tip, and I finally had to say, “Stop!  Enough already!” Here are a few we thought of.  

It’s not unusual for me to take a wrong turn and have to turn around because I’m not paying attention. Sometimes that means going around the round-about an extra time. 

Sometimes I forget an ingredient in something I’m making. “This tastes funny!” Many times I sit down at the computer and can’t remember what I was going to do or walk into a room and can’t remember why. Sometimes I spill something (Our dog loves my mishaps with food in the kitchen). Sometimes I say something I wish I could take back. Sometimes I’m impatient, thoughtless, self-centered, ungrateful, grumpy… You get the idea. I am so far from being the ideal me I wish I could be.    

Do you ever have any of these experiences? It’s easy to get upset with ourselves, discouraged, or even mad. “How could I be such a dork?!” I now view these as opportunities – situations to practice self-forgiveness and humility. We all make mistakes, so we need to give ourselves (and others) permission to be human. These are also great reminders that we should be patient and understanding when other people make mistakes.

Shifting my thoughts in this way has really helped me not be so hard on myself. I also think I’m a little less defensive when others point out or make fun of my imperfect ways.

Think of a time when you were a dork. How did you react? What thoughts were running through your mind? Try using these moments as opportunities to practice self-forgiveness these next few weeks.

Tina Hallis, Ph.D., is a positivity speaker, trainer, author, and founder of The Positive Edge, a company dedicated to teaching organizations and individuals the power of positivity to improve the quality of people’s work lives and the quality of company cultures.