Mistakes are often Your Best Teacher! Stop and think for a moment. Yes, I know this is both difficult and different than most of what you may usually think about, but making mistakes...

Robert J Samples Loc: Round Rock, Texas

Stop and think for a moment. Yes, I know this is both difficult and different than most of what you may usually think about, but making mistakes, if looked at properly, is a better learning opportunity, than getting things right the first time. If you tried something, executed it perfectly, you probably would lay that aside as just interesting, but not for you!

In looking back over my years of living, the things that I’ve learned were often after an embarrassing and humiliating failure. Almost as bad as if I had peed in my pants while standing in front of the classroom and attempting to recite Chaucer or Shakespeare. Do you recall any such incident? Those are never forgotten. Compare that to something else where you just whizzed through the exercise, whether in the classroom, ball field, or where ever.

It struck me when I was attending a storytelling conference in Fort Worth. Another storyteller was wearing a tee shirt with this emblazoned on his chest. “A BAD ACCIDENT OFTEN LEADS TO A GOOD STORY!” And reading that, at first I disagreed, then after reflection, I realized the truth of the statement. Both what you would have learned and can later recite about both the learning experience and the storytelling value of that.

So, if you are new to fishing, and will naturally find yourself making some terrible mistakes, but casting, in choices, and such, there was lessons galore to be learned and good stories to be told later. The worse the mistake the better the story. I don’t mean you should attempt to foul up, those will come naturally, but be willing to learn from those mistakes and it will make you a better fisherman.

All of which reminds me of a saying attributed to Will Rogers. He said there are at least three types of individuals and how they learn. The first type is one who reads books and solved his problems by learning by what had been adsorbed. The second type individual learns by careful observation of how others handle the problem, thus he has learned how to handle that problem. The third type of learning is someone who must pee on the electric fence to learn his lesson. So, regardless of which method you need, take my attempt to relieve you of some of the more painful choices on how to learn, it might save you some grief, but then maybe not! Just Sayin…RJS

Robert J Samples Loc: Round Rock, Texas

Hey! You! Yes, you. You think I am just bull shitting you? Just Wait till you are 86 and you will probably change your mind. Believe me. Just Sayin...RJS

bknecht Loc: Northeast pa

Wonderful post RJS. I no longer have any elders to inflect insight. Well done.

Robert J Samples Loc: Round Rock, Texas

Bknecht: You don't need any elders, you make enough mistakes to learn on your own, from yourself. Then you can become a sage of your domain...and impress your neighbors kids, as well as saving a lot of wear and tear. Have you ever noticed some folks continue to make the same, or similair mistakes and never learn? Just Sayin...RJS

Danger25 Loc: Philly/ Cape may New Jersey

Well said.

GaryH Loc: Northern Pa.

Great advice RJS. As usual. Thanks 👍

Big A Loc: Mesa, Arizona

As a kid, my grand-dad taught
me that the truly wise person learns from other people's mistakes as well as their
own ! By the 'watch and learn' method, one not only learns how to do something but also learns
which mistakes to avoid,
thereby learning from other people's errors without
being subjected to any
accompanying pitfalls !

tmhdgpth Loc: Farnham, VA on Rappahannock River

I've heard it said that:

Good judgement comes from experience -
Experience comes from bad judgement!

fisher Loc: whitewater,colorado

Robert J Samples wrote:

Stop and think for a moment. Yes, I know this is both difficult and different than most of what you may usually think about, but making mistakes, if looked at properly, is a better learning opportunity, than getting things right the first time. If you tried something, executed it perfectly, you probably would lay that aside as just interesting, but not for you!

In looking back over my years of living, the things that I’ve learned were often after an embarrassing and humiliating failure. Almost as bad as if I had peed in my pants while standing in front of the classroom and attempting to recite Chaucer or Shakespeare. Do you recall any such incident? Those are never forgotten. Compare that to something else where you just whizzed through the exercise, whether in the classroom, ball field, or where ever.

It struck me when I was attending a storytelling conference in Fort Worth. Another storyteller was wearing a tee shirt with this emblazoned on his chest. “A BAD ACCIDENT OFTEN LEADS TO A GOOD STORY!” And reading that, at first I disagreed, then after reflection, I realized the truth of the statement. Both what you would have learned and can later recite about both the learning experience and the storytelling value of that.

So, if you are new to fishing, and will naturally find yourself making some terrible mistakes, but casting, in choices, and such, there was lessons galore to be learned and good stories to be told later. The worse the mistake the better the story. I don’t mean you should attempt to foul up, those will come naturally, but be willing to learn from those mistakes and it will make you a better fisherman.

All of which reminds me of a saying attributed to Will Rogers. He said there are at least three types of individuals and how they learn. The first type is one who reads books and solved his problems by learning by what had been adsorbed. The second type individual learns by careful observation of how others handle the problem, thus he has learned how to handle that problem. The third type of learning is someone who must pee on the electric fence to learn his lesson. So, regardless of which method you need, take my attempt to relieve you of some of the more painful choices on how to learn, it might save you some grief, but then maybe not! Just Sayin…RJS

Stop and think for a moment. Yes, I know this is ... (show quote)

Logic tells us that experience is the best teacher......it also tells us that you get the test FIRST. Good to know????????

Barnacles Loc: Northern California

Robert J Samples wrote:

Hey! You! Yes, you. You think I am just bull shitting you? Just Wait till you are 86 and you will probably change your mind. Believe me. Just Sayin...RJS

I've known for a long time that
1) Experience is the best teacher
2) Bad judgment leads to a wealth of experience.

About 15 years ago, I had the first surgery that I'd ever had. On the first follow-up visit, I congratulated the Doctor. I told him that he'd given me the only scar I have that wasn't the result of bad judgment.

And yeah, there's a story there.

ghaynes1 Loc: Strawberry Plains, TN

Robert J Samples wrote:

Stop and think for a moment. Yes, I know this is both difficult and different than most of what you may usually think about, but making mistakes, if looked at properly, is a better learning opportunity, than getting things right the first time. If you tried something, executed it perfectly, you probably would lay that aside as just interesting, but not for you!

In looking back over my years of living, the things that I’ve learned were often after an embarrassing and humiliating failure. Almost as bad as if I had peed in my pants while standing in front of the classroom and attempting to recite Chaucer or Shakespeare. Do you recall any such incident? Those are never forgotten. Compare that to something else where you just whizzed through the exercise, whether in the classroom, ball field, or where ever.

It struck me when I was attending a storytelling conference in Fort Worth. Another storyteller was wearing a tee shirt with this emblazoned on his chest. “A BAD ACCIDENT OFTEN LEADS TO A GOOD STORY!” And reading that, at first I disagreed, then after reflection, I realized the truth of the statement. Both what you would have learned and can later recite about both the learning experience and the storytelling value of that.

So, if you are new to fishing, and will naturally find yourself making some terrible mistakes, but casting, in choices, and such, there was lessons galore to be learned and good stories to be told later. The worse the mistake the better the story. I don’t mean you should attempt to foul up, those will come naturally, but be willing to learn from those mistakes and it will make you a better fisherman.

All of which reminds me of a saying attributed to Will Rogers. He said there are at least three types of individuals and how they learn. The first type is one who reads books and solved his problems by learning by what had been adsorbed. The second type individual learns by careful observation of how others handle the problem, thus he has learned how to handle that problem. The third type of learning is someone who must pee on the electric fence to learn his lesson. So, regardless of which method you need, take my attempt to relieve you of some of the more painful choices on how to learn, it might save you some grief, but then maybe not! Just Sayin…RJS

Stop and think for a moment. Yes, I know this is ... (show quote)

I can honestly say the long term, lasting effects of mistakes that I have made far outweighed what I learned from them. In hindsight, I would have rather not made the serious mistakes I made than benefit in some small way from the learning process. To me, not all experiences are worth having to gain some knowledge.

Barnacles Loc: Northern California

Yeah. Some of my mistakes gave me stories that I won't tell.

Robert J Samples Loc: Round Rock, Texas

Barnacles wrote:

I've known for a long time that
1) Experience is the best teacher
2) Bad judgment leads to a wealth of experience.

About 15 years ago, I had the first surgery that I'd ever had. On the first follow-up visit, I congratulated the Doctor. I told him that he'd given me the only scar I have that wasn't the result of bad judgment.

And yeah, there's a story there.

Well, Dude! write it down, along with those other experinences for your children and grandchildren. Might save thiem some grief, and help them appreiate your insights. You will enjoy the experience as well!! Jusr Sayin..RJS