Dealing With Mistakes

Mistakes are a common part of life, and no one can expect to go through life mistake free. This happens both personally and professionally, but out in the world of the paycheck, mistakes are never really dealt with. Instead of being acknowledged, mistakes are often covered up by ourselves, bosses, parents, and teachers, as a means of avoiding embarrassment.

Self-employment means that you do not have the luxury of pretending that your mistake didn’t happen, but you do have the opportunity to turn it into a positive experience. Dealing with a mistake should never be avoided; instead, here is a list of strategies to employ when you do make one.

Stay Positive

Some people refuse to acknowledge mistakes, but on the other extreme there are people who beat themselves up too much when they do make one. One of the first things to keep in mind after a mistake occurs is to remind yourself that you were trying to get something accomplished, and just used a method that did not work. You should give yourself some credit for trying something new, and never berate or place blame upon yourself or someone else. Instead, just deal with the new situation. Remember, this isn’t the same as dismissing the mistake; you should never act as though it is unimportant or irreversible.

Take Responsibility

Once you have acknowledged the mistake and decided not to let it bring you down, it is time to take responsibility for it and for anything that may have come out of it. This is the “damage control” part of the process. You need to start by coming up with a new plan, one that will rectify any of the fallout from the mistake. A great way to start is to make sure and apologize to anyone who was involved with the mistake, and let them know you are trying a different approach to the matter. Don’t let a lot of time go by before you try again, either; instead, deal with the situation immediately. Time has a way of making the fallout from mistakes grow a lot bigger!

Learn

A truism about mistakes is that they are always an opportunity to learn. Analyze the process leading up to your error, and decided where it was that you went wrong. Once this point is clear in your mind, you must resolve never to make the same mistake again, and feel confident that you will not. One good method is to write down what happened in a personal business log or journal, something that you refer back to every so often in order to determine how your business has grown.

One of the worst things anyone can do after making a mistake is to use it a proof that what they are attempting is impossible for them. Mistakes are not signs declaring you to be inept in your attempts, but rather signs that you are attempting anything at all. Never make excuses for the reason the mistake happened, but rather embark on an honest analysis of the situation and set goals for yourself should you ever have a similar situation occur again. Above all, don’t waste a lot of time worrying about where you went wrong. By dealing with the situation immediately, you should discover where the mistake occurred and how it could have been avoided. Wasting time worrying or avoiding your mistake will inevitably mean that it compounds itself and continues to bring you down. Owning your mistake will mean that you have the ability to learn form it, and the strength to try again.