Keep a goldfish memory for the embarrassment and an elephant memory for the lesson.

Embarrassment and information arrive together, and most people keep the wrong half. The cringe is vivid, endlessly repeatable and useless after the first viewing, while the actual lesson is dull and easy to misplace. Holding the feeling long after the lesson has faded is how one small mistake turns into a lasting reluctance. Separating them is a skill you can practise.

Next time an awkward memory surfaces, write one sentence about what you would do differently, then deliberately let the scene go. Keep the sentence somewhere. The scene has nothing further to offer you.