Becoming the Scientist of Your Life

Here's a radical idea: There are no mistakes. Only data points.

When faced with a choice - a second date, a job offer, a vacation spot - we often freeze. We treat the decision as the final exam of our judgment. Make the right decision or face the consequences.

But what if we saw each choice differently? What if we saw every decision as simply a chance to learn something about ourselves that we didn't know before.

That job that looks perfect on paper? It's an opportunity to discover if the culture energizes you or drains you. The relationship that seems promising? Another date is just a chance to learn if the vibes are there (or not).

The truth is, we almost never suffer from the "wrong" choices. We suffer from the stories we tell ourselves about those choices. 

"This always happens to me" is a story that transforms a single data point into an inescapable identity. "Everyone else would have made the right choice"  is a story that ignores the reality that actually everyone is collecting their own messy data. "I've ruined everything" is a brutal story that blinds you to the impermanence of most outcomes and shackles your ability to adapt.

Each of these stories transforms mere data collection into harsh judgment. They turn the natural process of learning into evidence of personal failure. What if we replaced them with more useful narratives?

"Wow, I've just discovered something important about what doesn't work for me."

"Well that was an unexpected outcome. But now I understand something I couldn't have known otherwise."

"Interesting. Now I’ve got a bunch of information I didn't have before."

The masters of life don't avoid mistakes - they make them faster. They understand that wisdom comes not from avoiding error but from increasing the velocity of feedback loops. They don't agonize over decisions. They make them quickly, observe the results dispassionately, and get moving - adjusting their plans based on what they just learned.

The only true regret comes from not collecting the data at all. From staying so safe that you learn nothing new. From watching life from the sidelines rather than running experiments in the field.

Here's the practice: Make the choice. Observe the results without judgment. Extract the lesson. Apply it next time.

This is how you become the scientist of your own life.

Life isn’t a test. It’s a lab.