Last Friday, Roger Goodell, the commissioner of the National Football League, called a press conference to talk about the handling of the Ray Rice domestic violence incident. He walked up to the microphone, looked out at the large gathering of reporters, and said, “I got it wrong.”

I thought about his comment for a long time, not because he was talking about domestic violence – which is abhorrent in any form – but because of Goodell’s act of admitting publicly that he made a mistake. How many of us want to admit – to anyone – that we have been wrong?

I remembered a time about 10 years ago when I was a new advisor, and I made a mistake with a student’s schedule. I changed it without her knowledge and when she came to me, I brushed aside her concern and moved on. Later I received a call from a colleague on campus explaining to me that I shouldn’t have done that and why. That person also told my boss what happened. As bosses do, he picked up the phone and called me immediately.

“I heard what happened! Did you actually do that???”

“Yep,” I responded. “I blew it.”

“What?” he said, sounding shocked.

“I said, I blew it. I made a mistake.”

“Wow, I didn’t expect that,” he replied with a little chuckle. “I expected you to try to cover it up or make excuses.”

“No,” I said. “I learned from a boss of mine a long time ago that people screw up. When they do, they need to own it. Then they need to figure out how to fix it, if possible, or at least move forward in a positive way. So this morning, I called the student, apologized, and let her know I would not do it again.” My boss complimented me for the way I handled the resolution of the problem and hung up.

It’s true that I didn’t have to talk about my mistake in front of hundreds of people in a ballroom on national TV but I did have to admit that it had happened. It wasn’t comfortable, or easy. But saying that I got it wrong was the way to make it right.

I had my birthday yesterday, and I spent it mostly by myself.

I loved it.

See, in the language of the Myers Briggs, I am an introvert. I am certainly not what you first think of as an “introvert” – I don’t think anyone who knows me would call me shy or reserved – but I am definitely someone who gains energy from “alone time.” I love to have opportunities for reflection and introspection. I enjoy spending time reading, writing, and thinking. As I call it, I live “in my head” a lot.

When I spend time alone, I am not lonely. I am especially energized by hours spent on my own after any week when I have been in a lot of meetings with a lot of other people. I do enjoy being with others, but I have come to understand that I prefer to be with just one or two other people at a time. (My dinner on Friday evening with just my friend Lauren was great!) Rather than calling hundreds of people “friends,” I prefer to have a few friendships that are deep. I can look back on my life and see that my relationships have always been this way: I want to really understand the other person. My former roommates, office mates, and bosses can probably attest to this characteristic.

So after having a day when I did the laundry, read Back Channel by Stephen L. Carter, and watched a lot of college football, I can say my birthday was fabulous. Now you know why.

One of my favorite poems is The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost. My favorite part is the last:

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

Not long ago I walked one of the trails near the NC Museum of Art. I have loved this trail for years. When I need to clear my head, I go out and walk 3 or 4 miles. On that particular Sunday, for some reason, I was very aware of the traffic sounds on nearby I-40. I kept thinking about the drivers: how many of them had no idea that just a few yards away was this serene world, a path with singing birds, gentle breezes, and whimsical art? They could easily reach all of it if they only took the Blue Ridge Road exit, turned right, and went down to the Museum entrance.

Is there a path you have passed by without noticing? One with a different world that might calm and refresh you? The next time you are driving, take time to look around. See if there is something you have driven by a hundred times without paying any attention. You might find something wonderful.