“Forgive yourself for your faults and your mistakes and move on.” ~ E.H. Chapin

Did you ever beat yourself up over making a mistake?

Many people do. In fact, the inability to get past a mistake keeps many athletes and coaches from reaching their potential.

There are two things to know about mistakes.

One, everybody makes them.
Two, winners and losers react to mistakes in fundamentally different ways.

Yesterday, a big-league baseball manager made the most basic mistake possible — he filled out his lineup card incorrectly!

And it wasn’t just ANY baseball manager. It was Joe Maddon, who led the Tampa Bay Rays to a berth in last year’s World Series.

“I made a mistake,” Maddon said after the game. “It was my fault.”

Maddon even made a joke about it. Of course, it was easy to joke, because his team wound up winning the game. Still, he gave a blueprint on how to handle a mistake: admit it.

Winners see mistakes as a chance to learn. Losers see them as some form of limitation, something that can’t be excused.

One final thought: The ability to deal in a healthy way with your own mistakes will allow you to forgive mistakes in others.

How do you view your mistakes?