A couple of things recently reminded me just how important mistakes are when learning something new.
One was performer, song leader and composer Brendan Taaffe’s substack The most important thing you can do is fail, and the other was a voice, body and rhythm workshop I attended.
Getting lost is part of learning
Brendan believes that “the best thing you can do is to allow yourself to not be good at something the first time you try it.”
That was certainly the case in the workshop I attended.
The stepping patterns, rhythms and clapping (all whilst singing) were complex and unfamiliar. Even though we started slowly and simply, pretty much everyone got it wrong at the start.
There were even times when we got completely lost. It wasn’t just that we were getting things wrong — there were moments when we had no idea where we were or what we were supposed to be doing.
Why mistakes feel so uncomfortable
Getting things wrong can make us feel like we’re failing. Nobody likes that. It also makes us uncomfortable because, in that moment, we’re not in control — and most of us like to be.
The paradox is that, in order to be in control — to truly master something — we first have to be out of control. That’s how we learn and improve. Making a mistake forces us to pay attention and be present. Next time, we do better.
When things come too easily
My Dad use to say that everything came too easily to me. He suggested it would be a good lesson if I failed at a few things. At the time, I couldn’t understand what he meant, but now I do.
If everything comes easily, we’re not stretching our boundaries. If we don’t move beyond our comfort zone, we won’t grow or learn anything new. It may feel comfortable, even easy, but our skills won’t develop.
Mistakes in the creative process
Mistakes also show up during the creative process — when we’re teaching a song, devising a performance, or arranging or writing.
It’s easy to correct a mistake and move on. But sometimes the ‘mistake’ is more interesting than what was there before. Whether it’s ours or someone else’s, a mistake can lead to a better idea. It lets us to step outside the familiar.
When everything falls apart
What’s going on when we get completely lost?
It may be the moment when our whole system undergoes a kind of paradigm shift. We find ourselves in a no-man’s land between the familiar and comfortable, and the unfamiliar and scary. There’s no map or structure, so we feel lost.
But something has shifted. When we try again, what we’re attempting begins to make sense — in a new landscape our brain has quietly constructed.
So here’s to failure
So here’s to making mistakes, getting lost and even being a failure.
Long may we grow.
Older posts
You might also find these older posts of interest:
Singers, don’t be afraid to make mistakes – it’s the only way to learn
When you start singing for the first time, be prepared to fail. A lot.
It’s good to fail as a singer (and you should do it more often)
We all fail from time to time – and that’s a good thing
Chris Rowbury
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