7 Steps to Overcoming a Work Mistake
Everyone is error prone, even at work. How to handle mistakes and build trust.
It’s no secret that we all make mistakes on the job. Research done 40 years ago suggested that unsupervised employees can screw up as much as 30% of the time, a stat that manufacturers, engineers, and risk analysts still refer to. AI, for all its promise, won’t make us mistake free, either. Indeed, by automating easy tasks, AI leaves humans to handle only the most complex, ambiguous, and high-stress ones (the types of decisions for which we’re most mistake prone).
Still, while work errors can erode trust, individual mistakes are not career killers. In most cases, a worker has a good chance to bounce back, and even to strengthen their work ties. “Making a mistake can allow you to self-reflect, pay greater attention to your work, and expand your awareness,” says Val Olson Armstrong, a career and leadership coach at Korn Ferry Advance. Consider taking these steps if you’ve made a mistake at work.
Communicate quickly.
Don’t try to cover up an error, experts say. It’s far better to highlight a mistake than to have the boss find out about it later. Tell whoever the mistake has affected that you are addressing it. If you can’t fix it yourself, loop in colleagues who can help. Then let everyone know when the mistake is rectified. For leaders, talking about your mistake—and showing vulnerability—can make you more relatable to your direct reports.
Apologize.
Whether the mistake was yours alone or your team’s, tell people you’re sorry that it’s causing problems or hassles for them. Don’t be defensive or make your apology about yourself. People care much more about the impact of the error—and how you will address it—than they do your intent.
Get to the bottom of the error.
Too much multitasking? Miscommunication with a colleague? Plain old forgetfulness? Once you’ve discovered the error, figure out why you made it. Being proactive demonstrates your awareness of the problem and relieves others of the potential discomfort of bringing it to your attention.
Look on the bright side.
Depending on the mistake, you can easily become panicky or depressed. It’s OK to be upset with or even angry at yourself, but experts say it’s essential to avoid falling into despondency. While it may sound cliché, mistakes can often be teachable moments. “Instead of bouncing back from mistakes, dive into them,” says Kevin Cashman, Korn Ferry’s vice chairman of CEO and enterprise leadership.
Dissecting how you made a mistake allows you to consider different and potentially innovative ways to avoid making others in the future. Fixing a mistake can give you the chance either to learn or show off your agility and creative problem-solving skills. “Resolving a mistake can be very satisfying, even though making it wasn’t,” Armstrong says.
Be self-reflective.
Once you’ve handled the mistake, take some time to figure out what you can use from the experience. Perhaps the mistake has revealed that you were skipping a seemingly irrelevant but clearly essential step in a process. Maybe it has made you aware of something you’d never even thought of before. Write down the change you need to make and incorporate it into your work routine. This approach can help boost your resilience for the future.
Show others you’ve grown.
After a mistake, your negatives will often outweigh your positives in the minds of others. That’s why it’s critical to take action and be transparent about it. Tell your manager, customers, and peers about the strategies and tactics you’re implementing. This will assure them that the mistake won’t occur again in the future, which will in turn help you to rebuild any lost trust.
Acknowledge that you’ll make another mistake.
Fixing a mistake won’t prevent you from making another, different one, experts emphasize. No one is infallible; acknowledging this can help you avoid despairing when you inevitably err again. At the same time, mistakes are often part of a healthy creative process. Innovating can be the equivalent of throwing spaghetti at the wall and seeing if it sticks. “A lot of noodles will fall to the ground,” Olson says.
Learn more about Korn Ferry’s Leadership and Professional Development capabilities.
