“Winners lose more than losers lose.” Dr. Rob Gilbert
“My coach at Purdue, Piggy Lambert, constantly reminded us: “‘The team that makes the most mistakes will probably win.’
“That may sound a bit odd, but there’s a great deal of truth in it. The doer makes mistakes. Coach Lambert taught me that mistakes come from doing, but so does success.
“The individual who is mistake-free is also probably sitting around doing nothing. And that’s a very big mistake.” Coach John Wooden
Wow! Winners make the most mistakes—at first that sounds crazy, doesn’t it? But ponder it a moment and you’ll see that the legendary Coach Wooden has a point—and so does Rob Gilbert.* Winners are out on the field playing more. They’re taking more risks. They’re trying new techniques. They’re willing to go through the Mud Puddles of Mistakes in order to get to the Shining City of Success.
As in sports, so in life—and in writing! As writers, we need to get out into the world more, take more chances, have more fun, experiment more, take more detours, submit more, get rejected more. If we play it safe, our work will stay in a desk drawer or on our hard drive and never see the light of day.
A case in point: My play, Dust of Egypt, which is set for a short Off Off Broadway run in mid-March at the Frank Shiner Theater—so exciting!
But here’s the scoop: I wrote this play years ago, had a few readings, felt the ending didn’t work, and tucked the drafts away. It was languishing on my computer until a friend, reg e gaines, encouraged me to pull it out and submit it to a festival. I came up with a new ending and submitted it. The festival passed on it. But another friend sent me a link to another festival and lo and behold! it was accepted. That started me on a journey that I hope will keep going.
Some friends were so encouraged by this story that they’ve pulled out old projects of theirs that had been rejected and are now breathing new life into them. I’m always so happy to hear this. “Go for it!” my heart cries.
The bottom line: You miss every pitch you don’t swing at. So let’s be bolder! Let’s be braver! Let’s have the courage to get our work out there. As the immortal Babe Ruth once said, “Every strike brings me closer to the next home run.”
If we strike out, so what! Every strike is effort. Every mistake gives us valuable feedback. Either we are out there swinging or we’re on the sidelines, watching others swing. Let’s be swingers instead of sidliners.
Write on!
* Check out Dr. Gilbert’s fabulous Success Hotline at 973-743-4690!
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