Strike One and You're Out!

Only one strike? Even baseball players and criminals get three strikes. So why do we have this idea that if we try something once and don't succeed, we should just quit?

When we went to school, the subjects were reading, math, science and social studies. We learned the material and took the test. Unfortunately this system of education requires the correct answer the first time. We really learned, whether we realize it or not, if your can't get it right the first time, you are a failure.
I actually had a 7th grade reading teacher that would giggle when a student made a mistake. I often wonder how many of her students won't read aloud or speak in front of a group. (I know I didn't for 20 years. When I was forced to read or speak, I would hear her giggle if it wasn't perfect.)
What Bondage!!!!

So what did it take for me to get past this "One strike and you're out" mentality?

Watching a baby learn to walk.
Unless you are a horse, you did not walk the day you were born. Nor did you at ten months of age stand up and start walking because you saw someone else walk. Learning to walk was a trial and error process. Did you take one or two steps, fall then say, "forget it, I'm just not meant to walk"? NO! You saw others doing what you wanted to do, and you worked at it until you got it.

What if we addressed all our falls and failures as if it were a learning process like walking?
What could we accomplish in our lives if we would give ourselves permission to miss the target on the first try? What if every time we made a mistake, instead of beating ourselves, we heard Billy Joel singing "Your only human, you're supposed to make mistakes..."
Then...
What if we gave each other permission to be the person that we were each created to be? What if we encouraged others in all things as if they were learning to walk? Instead of giggling like my teacher, what if we gave permission to take ones time and encouraged others to try until they got it?
I guess, we would being singing "What a Wonderful World".

One strike and you're out? No way, the first ten swings are just a warm up.