So I failed again, I cannot do it I cry to my dad. I do not know why I cannot do it, but I can’t. I was trying to install a ceiling fan. I could not get the blades in straight. I tried many different ways. I tried putting the blades on with the fan on the floor, I tried putting the blades on with the fan hung on the ceiling. Both ways, I was unsuccessful. I was getting frustrated. I started to muscle my way into making the blades fit, I ended up stripping a screw, and again the blades were crooked. Now, I had two problems, a stripped screw and uneven blades. I put everything down, and yelled I give up.
My dad came shortly after, seeing me sitting on the ground with my face in my hands. Feeling rejected. He picked me up and asked me how I was putting the blades on. I didn’t want to show him, I wanted him to just do it, to fix the problem. He insisted that I show him. So with the fan on the floor I showed him how I was trying to put the blades on. As I attempted to put in the first screw, he stopped me. Let me see your screw driver. I handed it to him, he looked it over, and then he reached into his tool bag and handed me one of his screwdrivers. Try this he said. I said it won’t work, it is what I have been doing. He insisted again, and said just do it. So I attempted to put the screw in, and what would you know. The screw went it with ease, and the fan blade was level. He said now continue with the rest. I put the rest on in the same fashion. He helped me attached the fan to the ceiling. The blades were even and the fan did not wobble.
It was not me it was the tool, I asked what the difference was. He put the two screwdrivers next to each other. He asked if I could see anything different. Sure enough, his screw driver was not only longer, but the shaft was thinner too. I mentioned these two things, and asked if there were other things I am not mentioning. He said there are a few other things that are different but I mentioned the two most important ones.
He continued by saying that it was not me that was doing things wrong, I just had the wrong tool. My screwdriver, being short and fat did not allow me to have a straight line into the hole to screw in the blade. My screwdriver was making me put the screws in at an angle, thus making the blades crooked.
I learned a lesson that day, it does not matter how good your technique is, how much effort you put into something, if you do not have the right tools, and use them correctly, you will have an unfinished project. Not only did I waste a half a day fighting with those fan blades, I started to doubt my abilities, and had negative self-talk. This day also taught me to be kind to myself, do not beat yourself up over failure. Use failure to learn, to grow, and to be better the next time. The house we were wiring had 12 fans. After the struggle with the first one and the lesson, I was able to put the remaining fans up by the end of the day. Talk about improving my efficiency.
So, if something is not working out the way you want, don’t beat yourself up, look at your tools, are you working with the right tools, and are you using them the proper way?