i make mistakes, you make mistakes, we make mistakes

Alright, first things first: If you’ve ever sent a risky text to your crush, opened Instagram “just for 5 minutes” and somehow doom scrolled for 45, or said “you too” when the waiter said “enjoy your meal” - congrats! You’re human.

Or how about the time you ignored all the red flags because starting over felt scarier than staying stuck?
What about the decisions you made just to please other people or chase some short-lived validation?
Or those moments when you were way too hard on yourself… or let comparison completely suck the joy out of your life?
Again - congrats. You’re still human.

Somewhere along the way, we were taught to avoid mistakes like they’re dangerous. Like they define us. Like messing up means we’ve failed, disappointed someone, or fallen behind in some invisible race. But here’s the thing - mistakes are normal. They’re part of the process. They’re signs that you’re trying. That you’re learning. That you’re growing.

So if you need permission: I’m giving it to you. Go make mistakes! (reasonable ones, please)

Screw up, fall down, say the wrong thing, take a wrong turn, send the weird text. Just make sure you keep moving, keep reflecting, and keep showing up. Because the truth is, perfection is a myth - and progress is built on trial, error, and a whole lot of “oops.”

Instead of aiming to never mess up, why not aim to make better mistakes? And learn a little more each time.

Think about an Olympic swimmer - they spend years swimming that same 50-meter lane over and over, making micro-adjustments, learning from every stroke, all to get closer to their best self. Not a perfect self - simply a better self.
Or a basketball player taking the same shot a thousand times, missing a hundred, adjusting their form. Even then, no one makes 100%. And that’s okay.
One of my all-time favorite athletes, Kobe Bryant, once said:
“Great things come from hard work and perseverance. No excuses.”
If I could break that down into something personal, it would be this: Be true to yourself. Know what you want, know your place, your position, work on your purpose and don’t be afraid to work on yourself. Make mistakes, learn, and grow. Fall and get up. No excuses

So the next time you mess up, pause before the spiral. Instead of beating yourself up, ask:
What is this mistake trying to teach me?
What would I do differently next time?

You don’t need to be perfect. You just need to keep learning.
And remember: that person you’ve put on a pedestal? They’ve made mistakes and they are still making mistakes. Plenty of them.
They’re human.
Just like you.

- with love. JiHun -