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CELEBRATING MISTAKES I recently heard a
parent giving a lecture to a 5 year old about a screw up the child did.
I thought how we have all been through this and probably continue
being critical of ourselves in adulthood.
I hate when I make a mistake especially when I have made an
obvious one. I sometimes
will start to get my best critic out and give lectures to myself.
I will even call myself stupid.
What helps me is to remember that I am now smarter then I was
before. I forgive myself
for not being perfect. I
should be celebrating I just got an "A" in learning new
lesson. I once heard an
consultant say that he was smarter then I was because he made more
mistakes. Thomas Edison
when asked why he was continuing to work on his experiment to invent the
light bulb after many failures, said "I know 1004 ways not to
create it, I am getting smarter."
Some companies actually celebrate failures and mistakes.
I like this idea as long as: 1.
I don't keep making the same mistake. 2.
I have a plan to correct it.
Have we carried our
parents into the work system and forgotten that no one tries to make a
mistake? What suggestions
do you give yourself or others when makes mistakes are learned?
How does your organization react to mistakes?
Responses: 1. I tell consumers that "failure is success turned inside out." A discussion is generated regarding this saying. 2. I have them to tell me what they learn from their mistake(s). 3. I then have them to explain to me what they would do differently, if confronted with the same issue again. 4. I then help them to explore strengths that they have, and often do not give themselves credit for. 5. I remind them that life is a journey, not a destination, with many lessons to learn. Remind them that it is what they have learned that matters and prevents them from repeating the same mistakes. It's about breaking cycles and learning to live better, instead of just surviving. 6. I sometimes talk about historic persons who made mistakes, but never gave up. Mary H. Good
subject for the week...especially since our office is being audited in
13 days. As I am going through the files, I am finding LOTS of mistakes
that need to be corrected. During
a frantic 8 hour file check marathon yesterday, on a Saturday so that I
had no interruptions, I kept thinking about how I could re-train,
un-train, or better train my staff so that I didn't have to worry about
these blatant mistakes. I
am still pondering that, but I definitely need to re-address details and
how important they are. Unfortunately,
although our company is forgiving on SOME mistakes, it is not as
forgiving when there are LOTS of mistakes - which I totally understand -
because of the auditors who have no mercy.
I am much more hell-on-wheels if I find out a staff person has
been rude to a participant than I am about paper work...which changes
all the time with a funded program.
No forgiveness for rudeness! I do not consider rudeness a
mistake, but an attitude. HN CA I
think the majority of the mistakes we make can be great learning
experiences. Sometimes they can be painful, but if you learn
something from that mistake, than all the better. As for mistakes
on the job we deal with so much paperwork we are bound to make a
mistake once in a while. Most of these errors are a result of
rushing to get the to get the work done. I tell my staff to
slow down, "If you don't have time to do it right, when
will you have time to do it again. AS,
We
started up a new program for a community based organization. No one
really knew what to expect, but the three of us that were assigned to
the unit moved forward anyway. She said it was good to see that we were
making mistakes, it showed that we were doing something which was good
at least we knew what we needed to work on. James CA Like
your thoughts on mistakes and yes at least I for one took my parents
into the work place until I went to work directly for Ross Perot.
The degree of difficulty of the dive for my job responsibilities were
very high. Some of what I knew I was going to have to do, I
had never done before. One of my first assignments was to build a
pretty large data processing facility in
Where I currently work the attitude is similar however a lot of people are repeat offenders. Regards Pete Mistakes make me blush beyond control! I don't like it when I make one but that's because I think I am perfect. Mistakes teach me to laugh at myself in my personal life, or to 'fess up quickly at work in case someone might think I was trying to hide my mistake.
When I make a mistake around a loved one, my tendency is to become
defensive (especially if they are having fun pointing it out!). I
am trying to work on that one! CA
Checking my e mail I noticed how apt your message/question regarding mistakes is for my daughter. She thinks she should get it done "right" the first time and gets frustrated when it takes time. I'm hoping she won't give up after I fly back home in a few days. The instructor is giving her wonderful support and ensuring her that this is how she will learn. But I see my daughter as one who thinks she should be able to do everything exactly right the first time and if not then there is something wrong with her. I'm sure some of my "not so good" parenting skills are aiding in her self criticism, but I'm hoping with strong support now without ANY negative comments from me she'll be able to go beyond this fear. None of us want to look silly or make mistakes but if we never try anything then we close a lot of doors of opportunity for ourselves. When managing the welfare to work programs for 12 years I saw a
lot of "fear" in participants. To get them to reach out of
their comfort zone into the world of employment was almost numbing for
them. Defensiveness was the biggest barrier. Taking time to
build up their self image by looking at the positives in their
lives and in their abilities. Once those are brought to the fore
and given a chance to blossom it was beautiful to watch how self
possessed these participants became and how well they managed in the
world of work. I no longer work in the field but bump
into many former participants who are all still working and I love to
hear how good they feel about themselves. It isn't always easy for
them but they know they are much better off now than they were
before. Keep the faith all you employment counselors.
Margaret (M3) in We consider mistakes as learning opportunities. One of the best ways people learn is by making errors. I teach this to my Youths I work with also so that they are not so critical of themselves.
Have a wonderful week.
Bonnie
I
call it a learning experience, we don't make mistakes on purpose, we
just continue to learn and grow from the lessons we receive. MC In short, we use "mistakes" as an opportunity for growth and learning. Our office meets on a monthly basis to discuss challenges (aka, mistakes) and policy changes (never ending). We have found this forum most helpful and use them as an opportunity to bring the issues to the table for discussion. It is my firm belief that without mistakes there is no personal growth. So, embrace your challenges! Ann Arrisi Guess the best thing about making a mistake is to ask one's self What can I learn from this? And what can I do differently to improve the outcome or avoid the mistake in the future? Unfortunately
so many of us have come from homes that readily gave out criticisms but
no compliments so we have to learn as adults to appreciate
ourselves and focus on the good things we do despite negative feedback
from the world. Paula by being called on the carpet, usually in an all staff meeting, and being totally embarrassed. It doesn't keep me from making the same mistake again! I am just embarrassed MD |