The art of making mistakes
How unplanned mishaps have actually made life better
If you’re afraid of making a mistake or still kicking yourself for something you allegedly effed up, you’ve come to the right place.
From failures that led to world-changing inventions to bloopers that made movies better to a poorly aimed cartwheel that eventually led to a marriage and more, I hope this list will help you realize that when something goes wrong, another thing is likely to go right.
Here are just some of the beautiful accidents that’ve happened:
» IN BUSINESS
When a failed dating site turned into YouTube
In 2005, YouTube launched as a dating platform where people would post videos describing their ideal partner. After not a single video was uploaded in the first week, and even paying people to publish content wasn’t working, they decided to open it up to all types of video. A year later, Google acquired YouTube for $1.65 billion.
How a faulty adhesive eventually became the Post-it
While 3M chemist Spencer Silver was researching a stronger adhesive than the company already had, all that came up for him was the opposite: a significantly weaker one that’d stick to a surface and easily be removed. He had no idea what to do with this. But six years later, 3M scientist Art Fry was struggling to mark pages in his church hymnbook and realized that bookmarks would be more useful if they could stick to the page. While developing the prototype, the team realized how handy these things would be in offices, and since 1980, the Post-it has…wait for it…stuck!
How typos created engagement
I once asked award-winning author and serial entrepreneur Richie Norton if he wanted help proofreading his emails, because those things were always riddled with typos. He replied with:
“True, I’m guilty of typing fast emails and just hitting send. The odd thing I discovered is that since the eye is trained to see problems, errors actually create better engagement. It makes me more relatable. And think about it this way: If I hadn’t made those errors, would we be talking right now?”
Also. Spotting the following typo in a gorgeous journal-calendar created by Morgan Harper Nichols gave me motivation to get moving on my own stuff. It reminded me that done is better than perfect and that we are ALL human!
» IN MOVIES
How one of cinema’s most iconic lines was said on accident
Because the crew for Midnight Cowboy didn’t have a permit to close down a street in NYC, they had to capture Jon Voight and Dustin Hoffman walking down a sidewalk with hidden cameras. After 15 takes that were interrupted by pedestrians and such, a taxi ran a red light and almost ran the two actors over.
In that moment, Hoffman meant to say, “We’re shooting here,” but it came out as “I’m walkin’ here.” Thanks to a near collision and a resulting spontaneous line, that scene is remembered forever.
(P.S. When Dustin Hoffman farted in Rain Man, that was also on accident, and he later told Oprah that that was one of his favorite scenes ever.)
How a melting “cake face” made Mrs. Doubtfire unforgettable
You know that scene when Robin Williams is wearing a cake on his face to disguise himself from the social worker and part of the icing melts and plops into the woman’s tea? That was NOT planned! The heat from the set lights caused this to happen, and Williams rolled with it, making it one of the most memorable moments from the movie.
How an unplanned fall made for an even awkwarder striptease
Jamie Lee Curtis’s character in True Lies was quite green to the role of a femme fatale spy, so when it came time to seduce someone with a striptease, it was only fitting that she slipped and fell to the ground. The best part? She wasn’t supposed to! And now, this is one of the movie’s best moments.
» IN MUSIC
How a missed cue sparked a signature alt-pop song
You know that part in “Love Shack” when Cindy Wilson yells, “Tiiiiiin ROOF! ...Rusted.” Well, in a 2011 interview, Kate Pierson admitted that Wilson wasn’t supposed to yell that line solo or even come in at that time. But The B-52s decided to keep it, and as one Treble staffer put it, “It helped turn the song from merely a party monster into one of alt-pop’s signature tracks.”
How an accidental word led to a global pop phenomenon
Even though English pop duo Wham! was starting to crush it in the early 80s, Andrew Ridgeley still lived with his parents when he was off tour. One day, while writing a note to leave on his bedroom door for his mom, he wrote, “Wake me up up,” and after realizing he wrote “up” twice, he continued the note with, “before you go go.”
Then, when George Michael showed up to his room (Because that’s where they recorded all their demos!), he was immediately captivated by the note, and started writing a song from it.
Thanks to Ridgeley’s little writing mistake, “Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go” became their first UK and US number one hit. It even stayed at the top of the US Billboard Charts for three weeks!
How bad chords made a weird single even better
While thinking of a song that sounds off yet totally makes it better in the process, “Written in Reverse” by Spoon immediately comes to mind. As Britt Daniels sings, “I’m writing this to you in reverse,” you can’t help but think that the simultaneous, shoddy piano chords are on purpose. Heck, even in their music video, they include raw snippets and imperfect moments from recording that really add to this weird-good song:
Then, in an interview with Texas Monthly, about songs that didn’t make Spoon’s Greatest Hits, Daniel says the following about Transference, a less-successful album this single came from:
“Even as we were making it, we kind of felt like, ‘We’re gonna make an ugly record,’” Daniel says. “‘We’re gonna make a record that may fall on its face, but it’s going to do so in an interesting way. I feel like a band is more interesting if they’re willing to do things like that every now and then.”
» IN FOOD
How a shortage of bowls gave us ice cream cones
At the St. Louis World’s Fair in 1904, an ice cream vendor suddenly ran out of bowls. Thanks to quick thinking, nearby concessionaire Ernest Hamwi started rolling up zalabia — a fried, waffle-like pastry — into little cones. And voila! Ice cream was never the same.
How a forgotten soda turned into the Popsicle
In 1905, an 11-year-old kid named Frank Epperson was sitting on his porch stirring some sugary soda water. He set it down and forgot all about it until he came back outside the next morning to find it completely frozen around the stir stick. After devouring his accidental treat, he started selling the “Epsicle” (inspired by the ‘ol icicle!) around his neighborhood. He eventually made it for his own kids, who called it “Pop’s ‘Sicle,” and then in 1923, it was officially patented as the Popsicle.
How the wrong shipment created the world’s best appetizer
In 1964, a Buffalo-based bar owner was expecting a case of chicken necks but instead received chicken wings. At the time, wings were considered undesirable, but Teressa Bellissimo was determined to make use of ‘em, so she deep-fried them, covered them in hot sauce, and served them with celery and blue cheese dressing. Since then, they’ve been a staple item on many menus around the world!
» IN LIFE
When I asked folks to weigh in on Facebook about the art of making mistakes, I learned about how:
An unplanned pregnancy changed one mom’s life for the better
Matthew was not planned, but he was the best surprise of my whole life. My life would look VERY different if I hadn’t had him, and not in a good way. Being a mom is what I’m meant to do. This is the life that suits me best.
A knee injury led to marriage
I can trace meeting my husband back to a knee injury in the 8th grade. For years, that knee injury caused so much pain, kept me out of a season of sports, and for the longest time I called it the one thing I would go back in time to change.
But through a series of events, all stemming from that poorly aimed cartwheel next to a wall, I met my husband 15 years later and my whole life changed for the better. Now, I consider that knee injury one of the biggest blessings of my life.
So, my friend.
If fear of failure is holding you back from trying what’s tugging at your curiosity or a recent defeat is keeping you discouraged, I hope you’ll trust that a twist in the story is around the corner.
Something good is waiting to work for you.
And if by chance (Well, a really good chance!) you’re not seeing some shiny, super positive, world-changing result like many things on this list, open your eyes a little wider. Dig a little deeper. Take a second glance and ask yourself the following:
What can I learn from this?
Because THAT is ultimately the best thing to come from all the wrong things, am I right?
(And if you’re having trouble seeing the lessons or beauty in that Thing, hit reply, and I’ll help, yeah? Sometimes all it takes is a fresh pair of eyes.)
Until next time,
P.S. Was I the only one who didn’t know she actually said, “Tin roof, rusted” in “Love Shack”? I always thought she said, “Hennnn-ROH! Rusty.”
P.P.S. I love how three of the things I linked to in this post went to YouTube. I’ll never see that site the same again!