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LISTEN TO THOSE
WAKE-UP CALLS

As I look back on my teens and on my whole life thus far, it’s clear that I received a number of important wake-up calls. As I inquire into the lives of others, most people feel the same way. Many will acknowledge that the wake-up calls are there for the taking, as long as we acknowledge and respect them.

Wake-up calls can be anything from a fight with your sibling that gets a little out of hand or a little too rough, to being caught cheating on a test and thrown out of school. In both of these instances, and in so many others like them, the experience sends a shock, minor or major, through your mind, a feeling like, “Oh, no, what have I done?” You might feel awkward or embarrassed—or you might feel uncomfortable or relieved. In any event, there is a message to be heard.

While you usually don’t enjoy or appreciate wake-up calls while they are happening, often you may look back on these experiences as being turning points in your life; extremely important lessons that were learned. I heard a story of a teen who was caught stealing. It was humiliating, embarrassing, and painful. Yet that teen grew up to be a kind, generous, and loving person, someone who has really made a difference in the lives of others. When asked, he points to that awful experience as being among the most important in his entire life. It turned out not to be a tragedy after all because he learned so much from it.

Two things can happen after a mess-up, mistake, or mishap. You can pretend it didn’t happen, deny your involvement, run away, or avoid the consequences the best you can. Or you can say to yourself and others, “I’m going to learn from this experience and become a better person because of it.” This decision is one of those really difficult things to make in life, but one that makes an enormous difference over the long run.

Recently someone asked me what I believed were some of the keys to surviving the teen years. My answer was that it’s tough to say, but that listening to the wake-up calls was certainly up near the top of the list. I believe this is true because every one of us makes mistakes. There isn’t a person alive today who hasn’t, and if someone tells you otherwise, she’s lying or fooling herself. So the only remaining question becomes, “What are you going to do with those mistakes?” Will you listen to what they are trying to teach you—or not? I hope you’ll take this one to heart and tuck it away for future reference.