Unforced errors

In tennis, when a player makes a mistake of their own accord, it's termed an unforced error.

Back in the day, I recall one of my ex-colleagues telling me how the place where we were working was making him tardy. Meetings were badly managed, punctuality was a pipe dream, and leadership was non-existent. Sure enough, this had an effect on how he showed up as well. When seen in isolation, it looked as though he was careless and didn't care. But when you zoomed back, the reasons were obvious. In tennis terms, it looked as though he was making a series of unforced errors.

Even in tennis, there is more than meets the eye when it comes to an unforced error. The player might be tired. Or they might be low on confidence. Or the game might not be going their way.

Many times, our actions are influenced by our surroundings and forces that aren't obvious.

Two workarounds:

a) Focus on what's possible for you to do and keep the circumstances at bay. It's possible in spurts, but not for too long.

b) Find a space where you aren't browbeaten into making too many unforced errors.

PS: Unforced errors aren't mistakes. We make mistakes even during the best of times. The constant repetition of a habit that no longer serves you can be termed an unforced error.