"I had no idea so many people would like and share the post, let alone share similar stories," Dr. Bones, the mastermind behind the fun viral Twitter thread, told Bored Panda.
"For me, it was just an offhand comment about a ridiculous thing I did, and for some reason felt like sharing. I kind of wish I hadn't tweeted it, honestly. I don't really like this much attention," he said.
Bored Panda wanted to get Dr. Bones' take on why his post resonated with so many people around the world. Here's what he had to say: "I think all of us do silly, ridiculous things. And there's an idea that education makes you smart, which should mean you don't do the absurd stuff, but in reality, everyone's brain switches off from time to time. Plus, it's fun to laugh at people we think should be smart enough to not directly dump glue on their hands."
Laughing off your mistakes is a good way to deal with embarrassment. "I have little-to-no shame, so I'm always a fan of laughing at my mistakes," Dr. Bones said.
"Granted, I usually do so privately, not for 200k+ people, but it was nice that others were willing to help me feel better by sharing their similar stories," he told Bored Panda.
"A sense of humor and flexibility are key traits to successful adulthood and being able to laugh at our missteps allows us to go easy on ourselves when we do something potentially embarrassing. No one likes to 'lose face,' and that is engrained to varying degrees across cultures. Unfortunately, our brains may be especially prone to catastrophizing events and so we might make something more out of something no one else really noticed and no one else will recall later on," Professor Degges-White, from Northern Illinois University, told Bored Panda.
"For decades, magazines have been publishing those 'Boy! Was my Face Red!' type of columns where people shared their embarrassing moments. When we are able to 'get it off our chest,' we actually feel better about the event. That's a healthy response to an embarrassing moment. When our personalities are wired to feel that we must be 'perfect' in all that we do, we internalize negative feelings about the mistake we made and mistakenly assume that everyone else is judging us due to that one moment," she explained.
"Fortunately, our brains are designed to protect us from pain and many of us may suffer horrible humiliation at some point in our lives, but we can benefit from a brain that allows us to 'selectively forget' the incident or else we're able to rationalize it by reminding ourselves that 'everyone makes mistakes,' 'it was just one time and no one will remember it,' or similar healthy responses."
However, some people are raised by parents that demand perfection and use "forcible means to correct" their behavior if their expectations aren't met. "For those people, making mistakes throughout adulthood may be experienced as something that would provoke punishment and that brings on even more humilation," the professor said.
"The best way to embrace our mistakes is to acknowledge we've made one—or else no learning can take place. Then remind ourselves that everyone makes mistakes—that's totally normal behavior! Then figure out a way to laugh at yourself before allowing someone else to laugh at you first. When you laugh at yourself, others laugh WITH you, not AT you."
Dr. Bones’ thread had a whopping 204.4k likes at the time of writing, and the professor wrote on Twitter that he was stunned that the tweet got as much attention as it did. He was also surprised that people started following him because of his moment of foolishness with the bottle of super glue.
In our experience, being honest about silly mistakes and presenting it in a funny way is a great recipe for online fame. Though (probably) nobody wants to be known as That Super Glue Guy (especially if they prefer to live a more private life), the fact of the matter is that the professor brought a lot of joy and laughter into people’s lives. And that’s worth a lot.
There is absolutely no way that you’ll be able to spend your time on Earth without making some sort of mistake or thoroughly embarrassing yourself in one way or another. We’re talking about the kind of stuff that low-key haunts you at 3 am because your brain just had to remind you of how you messed up in front of all those important people.
The antidote to this deep sense of shame that can pursue you for years is learning to embrace your mistakes. Meanwhile, being able to laugh it off is without a doubt another powerful tool in your arsenal.
Previously, Bored Panda spoke about embarrassment and shame with psychologist and well-being consultant Lee Chambers. He shared his thoughts about the healthy and not-so-healthy ways to react to embarrassment. Moreover, the expert revealed to us how to calm down during those moments where we’re so embarrassed that it’s almost completely overwhelming.
"While embarrassment can be a challenging feeling that is fleeting or overwhelming, being able to find a response that assists rather than a reaction that is unhealthy is a skill to build," psychologist Lee told Bored Panda.
"If it's something that isn't particularly serious, laughter can be a great response that instantly makes you feel better," he said that having a sense of humor is very important.
"If the feelings are intense, try taking a few slow, deep breaths in through your nose and out through your mouth, calming your nervous system and physiological response. In a similar way to laughter, smiling can be effective in shifting your state to the positive,” he said.
