How to Recover From Major Mistakes at Work
You were late to a meeting. You forgot the report. You didn't read the memo. Most people make similar slip-ups on the job. However, if you've been making some major mistakes at work, it's time to make changes to avoid dire consequences. For Martha Stewart, it was jail time. For Don Imus, it was resignation. How do you recover? Follow these steps to learn from your mistakes and prevent them in the future.
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Instructions
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Pinpoint the Problem
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First, address the problem. Schedule a meeting with your boss and talk through the situation. Take responsibility for any fault and commit to learning from your mistake.
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Walk back through the series of events that led to the error. Ask yourself what could have been done differently and consider at what point things went wrong. Outline these details and implement a process to keep it from happening again.
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Submit your ideas in a memo or email to your boss. Depending on the circumstances, ask that this memo be placed in your employee file to illustrate your commitment to growing from this situation.
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Accept the consequences. Depending on the severity of your mistake, there could be serious repercussions. Realize that your situation serves to teach you.
Focus on Your Professional Development
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Ask your boss if you can attend a seminar, training or other professional development event.
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Offer to pay for this event out of pocket. After attending the event, present your findings to your department.
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Follow up with your boss. After a period of time, schedule a meeting with your boss to review your performance. Ask for feedback and prove that you want to grow from this experience.
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Tips & Warnings
Learning from your mistakes is the best thing you can do to improve professionally and personally.
Once the problem is resolved, it's time to focus on your professional development. Often when one makes multiple mistakes, employers have doubts about the employee's future performance. Move forward and spend extra time on the details to avoid future errors.
