Anticipating the New Year: Silencing the MMQ Within

Support (səˈpôrt/):  bear all or part of the weight of; hold up.

Mistake (məˈstāk/):  an action or judgment that is misguided or wrong.

Learning (ˈlərniNG/):  the acquisition of knowledge or skills through experience, study, or by being taught.

Super Bowl XLIX: Butler picks off Wilson (click on link)

How often this past year have I engaged the internal "Monday Morning Quarterback" (MMQ):  I cannot believe I did that!  What was I thinking?  I botched that situation!

It seems that I try to prevent mistakes with a false sense of being perfect and then bash myself when I am being human and vulnerable!  There are countless instances where people's mistakes become headline news - AND - where I headline my own failings (at least in my own mind!).

The challenge: slow down; hold lightly - becoming compassionate and tender with Self and Others; and learn from these vulnerable moments.  The decision or action - and even these MMQ moments! - become part of the journey towards understanding. 

Mistakes - Support - Learning

One of the dialogue skills (the "rules"to develop a Model II nondefended learning stance articulated by Chris Argyris) is the ability to support making mistakes in the service of learning.

Questions to consider this week:

• Do I focus on the "mistake" rather than the "lesson learned"?
• Do I create a "teeter totter" that rewards one over the other?
• Am I willing to look at the whole: the ability to hold both Mistake and Lesson in a creative tension, allowing a balance between vulnerability and growth?

When I look at the whole, I begin to see the word Support that creates an environment which accepts human vulnerability, silences the MMQ, and celebrates the learning.

Cheers to the New Year, as we make mistakes, as we learn, and as we support one another!

Larry Gardepie