I heard a doc say something yesterday that hit me right between the eyes.
He was talking about a patient who was a train wreck. One issue after another, and he referred to a saying in trauma surgery:
“Trauma is a disease”
Sometimes bad things happen by chance. Other times people bring it on themselves. Over and over and over.
You think there aren’t ER regulars?
Sometimes people create their own little black cloud to carry around just in case it’s sunny outside. Sounds weird, but it’s very true.
My oldest son is a klutz. Funny because he’s a great athlete, but every time he sits down to eat something crashes to the floor. Something breaks or spills. Literally every time. It might seem like they’re all “accidents,” but they’re accidents like a guy who walked into a casino and “accidentally” lost all his money.
He keeps his glass of milk right by the edge of the table. He sits sideways in his chair. He does a ton of little things wrong that create this picture. He’s not malicious, but he puts himself in a position to lose. He sets himself up for failure rather than success.
When we talk about systems vs. goals (stolen directly from Scott Adams), we’re talking about setting yourself up for success. You do things that will lead to where you want to go. They may not get you there completely, but they should and will help most of the time.
A goal of not knocking over the milk glass for a week is ok. Instilling the behavior (system) of putting the glass further from the edge of the table is much better. That will, in all likelihood, keep you from knocking it over, and is also something you have complete control over.
Will studying daily from The Final Step guarantee you pass? NOPE. But the system of studying every day and doing the right things to become a better test taker will put you in a better position for success. These are actions you can control.
Saying “I’m not a good test taker” is giving up your control of the situation. It’s like saying, “There’s nothing I can do about it.” Which is, flatly, not true.
Accidents do happen, but they certainly seem to happen to some people more frequently than others.
Brian Wallace
P.S. TFS 2.0 should be available in September. I’m still cleaning up the typos and recording the audio. When that’s all done and I put the last coat of wax on it, I’ll make it available.