I know, you are thinking that it could not possibly be that you have been wrong about everything you have said, thought or done in your life, right? Take a deep breath, believe it or not, we are seldom right.

Perhaps you are one of those extremely rare individuals who have never been wrong about anything in your life, but history would prove you wrong on most everything. What we believe is right is nothing more than our current perception in the moment and that perception changes over time.

Is it even possible to ask for a reasonable expectation of competency? Not really as it turns out.

Even scientists are not always right, even though most of us put science on a pedestal in thinking that if it can be scientifically proven then it must be correct. We believe scientists to be among the most correct experts in their field. We often put our money on it, as we buy things that are "scientifically proven" to work better, right? As it turns out those highly intelligent and regarded scientists are correct no more than the average human. In truth, they are just as human and we should not really expect any more perfection from them than our next door neighbor.

You see, our words, thoughts and actions are often wrong, and perhaps only right for the moment. Man once thought that the earth was flat, that man could not fly, the second-century Greek physician Galen believed that the liver circulated blood and the heart only circulated the "vital spirit." The astronomer Ptolemy's earth-centered model of the solar system was in vogue for over a millennium. Up until 1860 when Louis Pasteur pointed out that doctors were passing along life threatening germs that doctors saw the need to wash their hands before operating on an open wound. Up until the 17th century, man believed that the earth was only 6,000 years old, not the 4.5 billion years we know it to be today. Or, that millions continue to believe that the bible is actually  the "word of God."

Aristotle the Greek philosopher and scientist (384 BC -322 BC) was convinced that heavier objects fall faster than light ones. More than 2300 years after his death, Aristotle continues to remain one of the most influential people who ever lived. He contributed to almost every field of human knowledge then in existence, and he was the founder of many new fields. Over the years, evolving science has disproved some of Aristotle's claims and continues to do so. What was once thought correct is no longer so.

If we continue to live in the moment, then everything we think, say, or do is correct. However, only those who are open-minded as to the possibility of being wrong can ever be correct in their thinking.

As an example, my mother taught me to tie my shoes as a youth over sixty years ago. I have assumed for all these years that I know how to tie my shoes, but as it turned out, I was wrong. And, there is at least a 50/50 chance that you have been wrong as well. That is if you believe that the purpose of tying your shoelaces is for the purpose of producing a knot that will hold and not come loose. But, really, how many times have you tied your shoelaces with what you believed to be a perfectly good knot, only to have your shoelaces come undone during the course of the day? How many times have you observed someone re-tying their shoelaces, or walking along with one shoelace dragging along behind them?

It turns out that there at least 18 knots used by people to tie their shoelaces and quite possibly dozens more, if one were to expend the time to take a factual survey of the seven billion people on earth.

Last year, I purchased a rather expensive pair of shoes in London that had round shoelaces. Up until that time, all of shoes had flat laces. After a week of failure after failure of attempting to tie these round laces without them coming undone during the day, I resorted to researching how to properly tie these round shoelaces and spent perhaps 10 minutes on the Internet to solve my problem. What I realized that over the the past 60-plus years I had been tying even my flat laces wrong. I had inadvertently been tying my shoes with the most common, but unbalanced slip knot. And, my perception that I had held for 60 years changed in just ten minutes of research.

Not only had I been tying my shoelaces improperly, but since the rule applied not only to shoelaces, most of the knots that I had been tying were actually insecure, as well. This explained why none of my bows on presents came out looking right. Today, I know how to tie a bow that will be balanced so that not only do my shoelaces hold better, but that the bow will sit left to right, instead of heel to toe as they did before.

I learned that when both the starting knot and the finished bow were tied in the same direction, those twists compound each other, resulting in an "unbalanced" knot that sits crooked (bows lying along the shoe from heel to toe) and that comes undone more easily. In knotting terminology, this is known as a "Granny Knot" or "Slip Knot."

If both stages are tied in opposite directions, those twists cancel out each other, resulting in a "balanced" knot that sits straight (bows lying across the shoe from left to right) and that stays securely tied. In knotting terminology, this is known as a "Reef Knot" or "Square Knot."

Allow me to illustrate the differences;

While there's only a subtle difference in tying technique, there is  a big difference in security and visual beauty. However, while the visual beauty may not be your cup of tea, think about how this one little thing can make a huge difference in your life. What if you never had to stop to retie your shoelaces again? Better yet, what if you never had to tie your shoelaces but once? That's what happened to me. After I learned the proper way to tie my shoelaces, I realized that if I allowed just enough room and used a shoe horn, I could easily slip into the shoes without untying them. It has been a year and my new found balanced square knot is still holding securely.

Yes, it takes an open mind that is open to the possibilities of what could be in order to make the changes that matter most in your life. No matter what it is that you believe in this moment can be altered to make your life better, more enjoyable and more profound. Never say never!