Posts Tagged ‘mistakes’

“A man’s errors are his portals of discovery.”

–James Joyce 

Mistakes are inevitable in life, but learning from them is not. We must dedicate ourselves to improvement if we wish to make the most of these opportunities for growth. Rather than quickly sweeping a mistake under the rug, we should take the time to understanding what was done wrong and how it could be done better in the future. 

Many of history’s greatest figures have spoken on this subject. Albert Einstein, the legendary scientist, suggested that anyone who doesn’t make mistakes isn’t trying anything new. Truly, mistakes are a sign of growth and development. They serve as mile markers as we leave our comfort zone and push into new territory. 

By accepting mistakes as a necessary byproduct of life, we can use them constructively. Each error should be examined and used as a “portal of discovery.” This thoughtful approach to improvement will ensure a life full of accomplishment and worth.

In business, you’re going to make mistakes. Even with the many resources provided by PMI Coaching, your approach to each project and your choices for each decision won’t be perfect. But it’s important to be able to forgive yourself when those mistakes do happen.

• Share Your Mistakes A great way to come to terms with a mistake you may have made is to share it with others. This may be friends or family, but it will likely be most effective if you share it with employees, management, or other coworkers. This will help create an open and honest work environment.
• Don’t Judge Yourself Not to be too cliché, but everyone makes mistakes. You doing something wrong doesn’t automatically make you a bad person or mean you have nothing to contribute.
• One Bad Doesn’t Outweigh the Good Just because you made a mistake, it doesn’t negate all the good and correct things you’ve done in the past. Focus on the positive contributions you have made and will continue to make.
• Take Responsibility for Your Choices Shifting the blame to someone else won’t do anyone any good. Deceiving yourself and others won’t help you, your coworkers, or the business.
• Things Probably Aren’t As Bad As They Seem It’s easy to get really frustrated and worried and distraught about a current crisis. In reality, it’s likely not a crisis, but just a rough patch. Keep that in mind.
• Encourage Yourself to Move On There comes a point where you just have to move on. What’s past is past; move forward when it’s time.
• Worrying Doesn’t Change Anything Things are how they are; complaining and worrying doesn’t help.
• Most Importantly, Learn From Your Mistakes If you need to, write down the decisions you’ve made that you’ve considered “mistakes.” Next to it, write down what you might have done differently. Use it for future reference in case similar situations arise.

Mistakes happen, but if we forgive ourselves and learn from them, then we’re better off than when we started.