{"id":381,"date":"2017-04-21T20:54:03","date_gmt":"2017-04-21T20:54:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.comparably.com\/blog\/?p=381"},"modified":"2017-04-21T20:54:40","modified_gmt":"2017-04-21T20:54:40","slug":"recover-mistake-work","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.comparably.com\/blog\/recover-mistake-work\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Recover From Making a Huge Mistake at Work"},"content":{"rendered":"

This article originally appeared on Fortune<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

We\u2019re not defined by our mistakes, but rather how we handle those mistakes and who we become in the process. Here\u2019s the best game plan I can provide on how to bounce back after making a major mistake at work:<\/p>\n

Immediately take responsibility<\/b><\/p>\n

Don\u2019t compound the situation by getting defensive or justifying what happened. Admit your mistake to the key people affected and lay out a plan to fix it. Most importantly, explain what you\u2019re going to do and when you\u2019re going to do it. You\u2019ll regain your teammates\u2019 trust and they won\u2019t feel like they have to keep checking in on you to make sure you\u2019re doing things right.<\/p>\n

Make sure you understand your responsibilities<\/b><\/p>\n

The most common reason we make mistakes is also the most fixable: We don\u2019t fully understand the expectations of our role or the goals we\u2019re responsible for. You can never ask too much about what\u2019s expected of you.<\/p>\n

Ask for feedback<\/b><\/p>\n

Once you\u2019re through the worst of it, ask for feedback from the people who were most affected by your mistake. Not only will you get the chance to really learn from the situation, but you\u2019ll help others feel heard and see you in a better light.<\/p>\n

Show that you\u2019re committed to improving<\/b><\/p>\n

Let your team see that you\u2019re going the extra mile to improve. Try to be the first one in and last to leave, or go out of your way to help coworkers get their work done. Whatever you do, make sure you\u2019re showing that your focus is on the company. This can help smooth out a rough situation.<\/p>\n

Tighten up your little mistakes<\/b><\/p>\n

After you make a big mistake, the little things get magnified. Whether it\u2019s coming in five minutes late or turning in a project that\u2019s not exactly to specification, your little errors will seem way worse after a big mistake. This is the time to bring your A-game. Don\u2019t let tiny errors erode your team\u2019s trust in you.<\/p>\n

Put key items in writing<\/b><\/p>\n

We\u2019ve all been in situations where a coworker asks us to do something, only to be told on delivering it that it wasn\u2019t what they asked for. The simplest way to prevent these situations is to put your action plan in writing and share it with whoever else is involved. In doing so, you\u2019re giving others a chance to say either: \u201cThis isn\u2019t what we discussed; let\u2019s rethink it,\u201d or \u201cThis is what we discussed, but I think you should go about doing it in a slightly different way.\u201d Everyone involved will appreciate the clarity.<\/p>\n

We\u2019re all more forgiving of people we like. If you\u2019re positive, energetic, generous, and thoughtful, you\u2019re likely to get more of a pass on your mistakes. If you\u2019re negative, passive aggressive, or quick to point fingers, you probably won\u2019t.<\/p>\n

Be a hero<\/b><\/p>\n

The best way to make a big mistake fade into the distance is to solve something critical for the business. It\u2019s not always possible, but if you can do that, you\u2019ll instantly become a hero. Even if an NFL team fails to make the playoffs three years in a row, it\u2019s a winner in everybody\u2019s eyes if it wins the Super Bowl in the fourth year.<\/p>\n

Cut yourself some slack<\/b><\/p>\n

Everyone makes mistakes\u2014it\u2019s a part of how we learn. Remember that people judge you more for how you handle your mistakes than the mistakes you make, so try not to beat yourself up. High performers especially need to keep this in mind, as they will naturally put more pressure on themselves than their boss and colleagues will.<\/p>\n

Turn the negative into a positive<\/b><\/p>\n

A big mistake could become a big opportunity. When Coca-Cola introduced New Coke in the 1980s, everyone hated it. So what did Coke do? It said it messed up and launched a whole campaign about the return of classic Coke\u2014and sales jumped higher than ever. Everybody loves a redemption story. Your big mistake could be an opportunity to turn your career around.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This article originally appeared on Fortune. We\u2019re not defined by our mistakes, but rather how we handle those mistakes and who we become in the process. Here\u2019s the best game plan I can provide on how to bounce back after making a major mistake at work: Immediately take responsibility Don\u2019t compound the situation by getting … Read full-story <\/i><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":383,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[6],"tags":[19,36,13],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comparably.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/381"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comparably.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comparably.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comparably.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comparably.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=381"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.comparably.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/381\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":385,"href":"https:\/\/www.comparably.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/381\/revisions\/385"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comparably.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/383"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comparably.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=381"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comparably.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=381"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comparably.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=381"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}