Today’s a good day to think about your last serendipitous end. July 17 is “Wrong Way” Corrigan Day, the anniversary of the 1938 air flight of Douglas Corrigan who mistakenly flew from Brooklyn, NY to Dublin, Ireland.
Corrigan was an airplane mechanic and accomplished stunt pilot. He flew from Long Beach, CA to Brooklyn NY and filed a flight plan for a return flight to Long Beach. He had no radio or specialized navigation equipment on his 1929 monoplane.
More than 23 hours and 3,100 miles later, Corrigan landed in Dublin. He claimed heavy cloud cover hid landmarks he should have seen and caused him to read the wrong end of his compass needle. His explanation and motives were highly suspect.
Upon his return to US shores (by steamship), Corrigan received a hero’s welcome and a permanent place in American culture, including a 1980s Gobots toy named “Wrong Way” who transforms into a directionally challenged helicopter.
“Wrong Way” Corrigan’s questionable lack of direction in flight led to triumph on the ground. That’s the exception, more often our mistakes demonstrate the efforts we put into reaching for success; success is not a serendipitous event. Before we spend time kicking ourselves over mistakes we’ve made, remember that occasionally, we enjoy positive fallout from a mistake. When was the last time your mistake yielded an unexpected benefit?
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