Everything happens for a reason, right? Even the worst things that happen to us make us the person we are today, and while it may suck at the time, ultimately it can lead to growth and happiness. Here are some of Reddit's best mistakes.
u/S_aturn asked: What was the "best mistake" you have ever made?
Smooth move.
Watching this guy painting a beach scene in a touristy area of my city. Nobody else was watching, I was just zoning out, it was relaxing. This girl walks up and I didn't even notice, and she goes "wow that's beautiful." Just a joke as reflex but I shot back "you're beautiful."
I immediately realized what I'd done and I turned to this gorgeous girl and she was blushing. I think we were both speechless for a second. We flirted for a couple minutes but I was far too flustered from my f up to ask her out. Which makes no sense in hindsight but it was a great mistake.
Good pupper.
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Getting my dog.
I was a dumbass 19 year old who couldn't afford a dog nor did I get the type of dog for my lifestyle.
I had to keep being better for her. We had a rocky journey, but now she's a spoiled ass boxer that goes to daycare and plays every day.
Um....why is that a problem?
Helping my last girlfriend's brother make some money by paying him to watch my cat. She flipped out and ended up breaking up with me over it.
Turns out, my relationship was pretty toxic and I couldn't see it because I was so in love. Still recovering from the toxicity, but I can see it as a positive now and I'm really looking forward to 2020 because of it.
Buttf*ck nowhere is the best.
I moved to buttf*ck nowhere to start a job. My mom kept saying it's a dead end, and that I really need to switch jobs every 3 years if I want to progress. It was a 5 hour drive through twisty winding roads to a place where nothing but sheep, cows, and turnips grow in a 100 mile radius. It was pretty dire, and I could only think that I was making the biggest mistake of my life.
Well, turns out people in buttf*ck nowhere pay quite well to make sure you stay in buttf*ck nowhere. I've been getting a 5% bonus every year, around 2% pay increase every year to account for inflation, and an extra 5% pay rise every year for performance. Property prices are very cheap in buttf*ck nowhere. I met the love of my life in buttf*ck nowhere. It's quiet, peaceful, and crime is almost nonexistent.
Awwww.
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Deciding to take a paid internship. It was a total scam, I had to door knock on houses and then convince them to hire me to paint that house.
My wife was working with the same company and we met at a Christmas party.
Getting banned can be the greatest blessing.
I was sent to work in another office that didn't have their sh*t together. Apparently I made some mistakes and customers got pissed off and it got back to my boss. Fast forward 6 months and that office is still a sh*t-show, but I never had to go back because I'd been "banned." It was great.
Yum!
When making a batch of oatmeal-raisin cookies, I mistakenly used "Craisins" instead of raisins.
The cranberry flavor and texture turned out to be a big hit with everyone that tried the cookies.
We love a good flight mishap.
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When booking airline flights on-line was newish, I booked a flight from New York to Detroit and a rental car at the airport. I meant to fly into Detroit Metropolitan Airport but booked to Detroit City Airport by mistake.
The plane landed and they rolled up some stairs to the plane almost immediately. I walked fifty feet to the terminal building; waited a few minutes for my bag; walked thirty feet to the car rental counter; got my key; walked another fifty feet across the road to the car lot; got into the rental car and drove away.
Ten minutes later I was passing Detroit Metro on I-94. Had I flown into the larger airport, I would have still been waiting for the plane to pull up to the gate and for the extendo-thing to be hooked up.
Another cute one.
This girl (A) was introducing me to her friend (B) at a restaurant. I thought nothing of it at the time, but later she (A) asked me what I thought of her friend(B) and my response was "She's cool, I like her" as in "she's a cool person, I like her as a potential friend"
Shortly after this conversation, she(A) went to her friend(B) and told her I liked her and wanted to date. I didn't have the heart to tell her (B) otherwise. So long story short, we have been married for 5 strong years
Cats change lives.
I thought this said "biggest mistake" and I was so pumped cause I had a great one. But nope. Thought really long and hard about this and had nothing until I read that one comment about them having a dog.
So I'll say this: my roommate moved out and ditched her cat with me, said she'd try putting her up for adoption and never did. And I couldn't handle doing it myself so I kept her. So here we are, never was supposed to have a cat, never thought I ever could have a cat, and now this cat is quite possibly the only thing keeping me alive. Where would I be without her?
In fact, some mistakes are so astronomical that they're remembered for decades afterwards, leaving the one who made the mistake a legacy of being a dumba**. Here are a few of them!!!
U/ronjans24 asked: What was the biggest mistake in human history?
Some may argue that the existence of the Universe was a mistake. I disagree. It was clearly Zayn leaving One Direction. But these next few were pretty bad too.
If you do the math, this is also the reason why Hentai exists.
I'll say the wrong turn Franz Ferdinand's driver made that went right in front of Gavrilo Princip.
EDIT: yes I'm aware war may still have broken out even if Franz Ferdinand wasn't assassinated
Imagine you're Gavrilo Princip. The assassination plot you and your friends had been cooking up for about the last year or so has been a complete and total disaster, just a monumental f*ck-up of the highest degree. You're staked out at this deli thinking maybe, just maybe the car will pass by, and by some stroke of sheer luck, it does.
If you're Princip, this is nothing short of serendipity.
Petition to return to the ocean.
Ocean Surf GIFGiphy"Many were increasingly of the opinion that they'd all made a big mistake in coming down from the trees in the first place. And some said that even the trees had been a bad move, and that no one should ever have left the oceans."
"In the beginning the Universe was created. This has made a lot of people very angry and has been widely regarded as a bad move." - Douglas Adams
This was, in fact, a monumental mistake.
Sears not beating Amazon to the punch.
Blockbuster not buying Netflix.
You thought THOSE were bad? Well gear up for their next few, because they are 100% accurate. Except the one about Cats, that movie slaps.
I don’t know sports, but sure.
Seahawks not running it.
I used to wear a Seahawks jersey whenever I took a test because I knew I would pass when I shouldn't.
CATS is great, y'all are just boring.
GiphyThe Emoji Movie.
That live action movie about Cats is also up there.
Very fair point.
Social Media.
Humans are not wired to have that many social interactions and maintain that many relationships. Plus the echochambers it allows people to create for themselves, no matter how conspiratorial or vile their beliefs, means that stupid/evil people are no longer shunned into changing their mind.
Not sure it was worth being able to see what a celebrity had for lunch or what new "dance" your younger cousin and her tween friends are doing.
But in all seriousness, some horrible things may now have happened if the right thing was halted at the right time.
Washington called it.
George Washington Disney GIF by Hamilton: An American MusicalGiphyVoting for people based on what side of the political spectrum they're on. George Washington himself advised against political parties because he thought they would cause too much division in this country. Unfortunately for everyone, he was right.
Big oops on that one.
Barack Obama mocking Donald Trump at the Correspondents Dinner might have led directly to his 2016 run....
"Now, I know that he's taken some flak lately, but no one is happier, no one is prouder to put this birth certificate matter to rest than The Donald," Obama said. "And that's because he can finally get back to focusing on the issues that matter — like, did we fake the moon landing? What really happened in Roswell? And where are Biggie and Tupac?"
Then he turned serious: "But all kidding aside, obviously, we all know about your credentials and breadth of experience. For example — no, seriously, just recently, in an episode of 'Celebrity Apprentice' — at the steakhouse, the men's cooking team did not impress the judges from Omaha Steaks. And there was a lot of blame to go around. But you, Mr. Trump, recognized that the real problem was a lack of leadership. And so ultimately, you didn't blame Lil Jon or Meatloaf. You fired Gary Busey. And these are the kind of decisions that would keep me up at night. Well handled, sir. Well handled."
This is the best Star Wars and no one can change my mind.
I'll take 'Star Wars Christmas Special' for $100.
That atrocious pile of manure gave us Boba Fett, so without the Christmas Special there won't be The Mandalorian.
Wow, in this article, I openly admitted my love for Cats AND The Star Wars Holiday Special. So maybe my existence was the biggest mistake of all.
ANYWAY, I hope you enjoyed, and I hope you all feel a little bit better about yourself. Because when push comes to shove, at least you didn't accidentally start World War I