I gave a reading to a student recently and she commented, “I just make so many mistakes”. She was in a new job, a higher position than she’d ever had. There was a learning curve. Her employer knew this and had hired her anyway, willing to put in the time to get her up to speed. She worried that she wasn’t ready for this job. Maybe she never would be.
Making mistakes can seem very hard but look at it this way: brand new babies don’t come in fully formed with all their information! It’s a process; we’re meant to learn and grow and it’s why you don’t see toddlers in college lectures. They’re not ready; they’re busy throwing sand at each other and drooling.
What is it about not being ready that’s so triggering to adults? It’s the fear of getting it wrong, making a mistake. When I took Animal Communication years ago with my beautiful teacher David, he said something I’ve never forgotten. He was addressing a student who said they weren’t ready to read. I don’t remember it verbatim, but it was along the lines of “you can’t get it wrong. Somebody, somewhere is getting a healing.” I tell my students to embroider that on a pillow.
It resonated deeply back then, that permission to be imperfect and experiment. I teach new clairvoyant students and they’re accurate around 90% of the time. That’s significant! It’s not actually about getting good information, they’re already doing that.The other 10%? No sweat, somebody somewhere is getting a healing!
I used to be so afraid of mistakes I never felt ready for anything. I’m not a risk taker. Yet I still managed to move to a different state to live with people I barely knew, work backstage on national tours of Broadway shows with no experience, travel to China to adopt a baby, learn to talk to animals and become a professional clairvoyant. I’ve made an avalanche of mistakes along the way. A therapist once said, when we get to the point where something’s easy, most people get bored and don’t want to do it anymore. That was a revelation. We’re supposed to be amateurs!
If you’ve ever learned a new skill, parented a child, made friends, traveled, tried new foods or adopted a pet, you’ve encountered a learning curve. That’s all of us, isn’t it? I recently went on a longish vacation to Portugal. My traveling companion commented at the end that we were just starting to get the hang of travel in a foreign country. We had to drive around lost (a lot), eat weird things, argue with airline agents and take an interminable taxi ride to that place that was a crashing disappointment. Was it a series of mistakes? Not at all, just some interesting things that happened as we figured it all out.
I tell my students, you have to give clairvoyant readings to learn how to give clairvoyant readings. It seems like a conundrum, but it’s true of everything from learning to walk to flying a plane. It’s all just adventures on the learning curve.
I looked at my readee, the one with the new job and all the mistakes. I could see a big pile of energy right in front of her third chakra. It looked like Santa’s sack, full of Christmas presents! I told her, what looks like a giant obstacle is actually a big bag of gifts that you will start opening as you learn and grow and make more mistakes.
Her new employer? I saw a kind-hearted man who knew this woman was facing a learning curve. I could see his amusement and his patience. I told her, he knows you’re just starting out. He can see your potential and by the way? He hired you because he trusts himself!
When we parted company I could see that in spirit, she was starting to open the sack and look inside. She had some permission and a little more amusement; it wasn’t all so serious. “Mistakes! I told her. Go make ‘em!”
She’s going to be fine. We’re all going to be fine. We’re supposed to be amateurs!
Have at it, and blessings to you all,
Katie
Rt. Rev. Katie Heldman is the Co-Director of Psychic Horizons Center, and wrote this article for the November 14th, 2022 eNews.
