Mistakes: An Unanswered Question

Everyone makes bad decisions... it is what life is all about: learning from mistakes. So at what point does making the same mistake become a habit, or even a personality flaw? There are mistakes that do not ever seem to be fixed. The mistakes in mind are small ones... but they seem to add up... Asking for help is a possibility, but everyone has mistakes to deal with as well. Which makes asking for help a selfish act. Furthering ones self through the use of others. The idea of using others as stepping stones to improve is a sickening thought. So how does a person better them self, evolve, take their circumstantial mutations (mistakes) and use it as a tool for survival?

No answer coming from my brain yet... I guess I'll have to get back to you.