Spilled the paint? Look at it before you wipe. Sometimes the accident is better than the plan.

An accident produces something your intentions would never have generated, which is exactly what makes it worth a look before you correct it. The reflex to tidy comes from the plan, and the plan is the thing that was limiting you. Not every mistake is a gift, but the reflex removes them all without checking.

Build in a pause before you undo. Look at the wrong version for ten seconds and ask whether it solved something you had not managed to solve on purpose.