Don't be afraid to try it three times

For some reason, we seem to put value on "the first try is the charm." We have this odd obsession that if we complete a task perfectly on the first try we'll be revered—we'll WIN. We get to mark down a hole-in-one. Be ahead in the game. Personally, I like making a rough shot and refining along the way. But life isn't golf.

Being a single woman traveling on my own in an RV, I have to deal with a lot of stereotypes:  can't drive, must not like men, can't park, must be waiting for her husband, must be a bitch, OMG IT'S AN ASIAN WOMAN DRIVING EXIT NOW!!! Goes with the territory of living life as me.

But the thing that comes up way too often is the question (and sometimes not even a question) of "Do you need help backing up?" Now, on the surface, that is a polite and helpful question. But...did you run over and ask the grisly old dude next to me in the beater van that's parked hella wonky if he needed help backing into his space? Did you ask that retired couple in the Class A? Did you just walk behind that young family's rented Class C and start wandering back and forth behind them, waving your hands in the air and shouting commands to their back bumper, occassionally pointing non-sensically, while constantly disappearring into blind spots or the exact space where they need to reverse into? No?

Now, I'm not knocking polite and respectful offers for assistance. Help is something we too often don't ask for when we need it or offer to strangers when we are in a place to assist. Thank You...for your offer. But, no thank you.

Most creative processes start as rough drafts that get refined or rewritten multiple times before you get the desired finished product, so why shouldn't that hold true in other applications in life? I have learned in my year and a half of owning and driving and frequently changing campsites in my RV that I am not a "reverse once and done." And that's okay.

I think a lot of us have this notion that we have to get it right the first time—especially if people are watching—to prove we know what we're doing. But when I say "no, thank you," please listen. This is my rig. I've been doing this a while. I get nervous when I'm being watched, but I especially get on edge if people are walking around behind or beside me while I'm backing up. So please listen when I say, "No, thank you. I'm okay getting there in three tries."