owning your mistakes

To err is human. We all make mistakes – we take the wrong action, give the wrong direction to someone, say the wrong thing. In work, a mistake can be very small with little or no business consequence, for example, a typo on a presentation, or getting tongue-tied in a meeting. Or, mistakes can be big and impact the quality of the work you are delivering or the business’s bottom line. Oftentimes, we feel guilt or embarrassment when we mess up, even over the little inconsequential errors. How can you learn to own your mistakes, make fewer mistakes, and not feel so guilty about being wrong once in a while?

Making mistakes and being wrong is not fun. I would like to be correct 100% of the time, but I don’t know everything and I am also a work in progress. Admitting to being wrong in the moment and addressing that mistake, is difficult, but it’s necessary especially in a team setting when you’re working with others, and especially for your own self-improvement. 

“I have done nothing wrong ever, in my life.” – Parks and Recreation

Why is it so difficult to own mistakes at work?

1. You’re a perfectionist or you’re too hard on yourself
2. You’re embarrassed or you’re afraid of what others will think
3. You work in a “psychologically unsafe” environment where mistakes are reprimanded disproportionately

Although this post cannot solve for #3 (there’s a lot of literature on how to handle a psychologically unsafe workplace, here’s one article), any personal shame or fear about failure and mistakes can be worked on over time with the right perspective. 

Why should you learn to own your mistakes?

• Mistakes are how you personally improve and learn how to be a better manager and leader. If you’re too hard on yourself every time you’re wrong, you won’t be able to improve and grow as an individual 
• Creativity and innovation require making mistakes to get to a finished product. As Ms. Frizzle (from The Magic School Bus) used to say, “Take chances, make mistakes, and get messy!”
• You want to create an environment for others to be comfortable making mistakes too. If you’re hard on yourself for being wrong, you will create an environment where your team doesn’t feel comfortable making mistakes either.

Making mistakes is something you have to learn to become comfortable with, and you can do that by owning your mistakes and seeing them as a learning opportunity. Through this, you’ll make fewer mistakes and smaller mistakes, and develop your skills as a manager and leader.

How do you own your mistakes?

Be honest about the cause and impact. First, when you make a mistake, be honest with yourself about what happened. What was the cause and what was the impact of your error? Try to treat the analysis of the situation objectively, without passing judgment on yourself.  Then, identity who needs to know about what happened. This might be your boss, your team, another team you work with, or a vendor.  Be honest with them about what occurred and give them the entire perspective of the impact. This will help them understand quickly, and give them the opportunity to identify any other impact.

Offer a solution. If the mistake is correctable, come to the table with a solution. Go into problem-solving mode. If you have a full understanding of the impact, and the business situation, this might be easy to do. Don’t have a solution? Admit that too and enlist the people you need to find a solution. If the mistake is bigger and impacts multiple business areas, you might have to ask for help to find a solution.

Learn from the situation. There’s a popular saying: you never lose, you win or you learn. Everything is a learning opportunity, especially the mistakes that you make. Start by learning from the mistake itself – what should you do differently next time to avoid making the same mistake? For example, are there controls you can put in place for yourself or for the business process? Then evaluate how you handled the situation – Did you address the situation quickly enough? Was the solution you offered effective? Who helped you come to a solution? Was the solution adequate?

Eventually, you will learn to make fewer mistakes, and make smaller mistakes. And you will see that a lot of mistakes made at work can allow you to fail fast – make the mistake, learn from it, adjust, and move on. This kind of mindset towards mistakes allows your business decisions to be agile as you move toward the best solution.

Like many of the other topics covered in LMK, owning your mistakes follows the common themes of honesty, problem-solving, and continuous self-improvement. Through improving how you handle mistakes while also continuing to make mistakes, you will also improve your leadership and management skills.