SethMathers.com

November 2017

“It’s good to learn from your mistakes. It’s better to learn from other people’s mistakes.” – Warren Buffett

Dear

Over the last few months, I have been reading Harry Potter to Ruby in the evening when the other kids go to bed. When I was first introduced to Harry Potter by my sister Jennifer, I had no desire to read it. I actually thought the idea of an 11-year-old boy finding out he had magical powers was pretty stupid. I was in high school at the time and thought most things were stupid. I gave in and quickly got sucked into that magical world. Getting hooked on Harry Potter is actually the sole reason I love to read. (Thank you Jennifer!) I wanted to share that with Ruby, and she seems to enjoy the evenings we are able to read before she goes to bed.

If someone has read the books or seen the movies, I’m sure they can tell you their favorite characters; Remus Lupin, Sirius Black, Luna Lovegood, and Ginny Weasley are a few of mine. As I have been reading to Ruby, I have really enjoyed reading the portions with Hagrid and have come to appreciate him more. There are a few times Hagrid says, “I shouldn’t have said that; I should not have said that.” It typically follows important information that should have been kept secret. Hagrid continually makes the same mistake — sharing too much information. (I’m sure we all have had moments we can relate to that.) Reading Harry Potter to Ruby has resulted in my realization that mistakes are not something to fear but should be seen as an opportunity to learn from.

While it wasn’t something I said, there are times I know that I shouldn’t do something myself. Changing the oil in my car is something that I probably could do if I knew how. I could learn one day, but for now, I’ll leave that to people who know what they are doing. There are plenty of other times that I will leave a task to someone that has more experience.

A lot of you have noticed that over the last few years I have sported a beard of various lengths. It has only been recently as my beard has grown longer that I have realized that my beard care skills are limited. While I might be able to handle doing some minor trimming or snipping of a few random strays, I cannot be trusted to do major beard sculpting. That is something that needs to be done by someone with more experience. I know what you are thinking, “Seth, it’s just a beard; it will grow back,” and you would be correct. It is just a beard and it does grow back. However, I run an Instagram account called Beards of Utah and am responsible for creating content on the account. Not having a beard makes it even more awkward to ask random bearded gentlemen if I can take their picture for Beards of Utah. In the future, if you see a beardless, double chinned me, more than likely I made a mistake — not hiring a professional.

I wish it could say it stops with my beard, but it doesn’t. On more than one occasion, I have gotten distracted when backing the car out of the garage. Luckily, I just bump the side of the garage with a rearview mirror, and nothing really eventful happens. Not long ago, I was in such a hurry, and I wasn’t looking while I was backing out. I tore the driver’s side mirror clean off the car. That was a costly learning experience from making a mistake that easily could have been avoided. It could have been much worse; it could have been a neighbor’s pet or a child. It really is important to pay attention when you are behind the wheel. Even something so mundane as backing out of the garage. I’m just glad I didn’t get the repair work done at the dealer. That would have been even more expensive.

Recently, I was very frustrated with Ruby and Audrey for the state of their room. It was very messy, and I was tired of helping them stay on task. There was some yelling involved. At one point, I picked up a shoe and tossed it across the room . . . OK, maybe more than tossed the shoe. I put a nickel-sized hole in the wall. I made a mistake: don’t explode with your hands, feet or mouth. You don’t realize until you see the look on one of your children’s faces what a moron you just acted like. We are constantly working with our children on controlling their frustration and anger, and here is dad going off the handle. It was not my best moment as a parent. I love my little humans. I need to be a better example of how to respond to frustration and anger.

We all make mistakes. Some are big. Some are little. Some only cost us time. Some of our mistakes could cost thousands of dollars. Sometimes a mistake could cost us that manly beard that we have groomed for months. Some mistakes cause us to be a bad example to the people we love most in our lives. Sometimes we share information we shouldn’t. If you ever can say “I shouldn’t have _______ that; I should not have ______ that,” more than likely you made a mistake. When we learn from our own mistakes, that is truly an amazing gift. If we can learn from the mistakes of others, that can be an even greater gift.

So, keep your cool around the younglings; pay attention while behind the wheel; if it isn’t in your skill set, hire a professional; and don’t tell people how to make your three-headed dog named Fluffy fall asleep. The safety of Hogwarts depends on it.

Sincerely,

Seth Mathers

P.S. If you want to know how to keep yourself from making some of the most common fundamental mistakes when it comes to selling a home, I have you covered. Just ask, and I’ll send you a copy of my book.