Turning Mistakes to Success
What makes a true career success story is not how few mistakes one makes but how one deals with those mistakes. Everyone makes missteps from time to time, whether big ones or small ones, and everyone has to face the consequences, whether minor or major. But even the most prolific of leaders have faced adversity and doubt; it is the way they turned their mistakes into opportunities that distinguished them from the rest of ordinary Joes.
The worst thing that one an do after making a mistake is deny making it or shifting the blame onto another person. The first step to dealing with a mistake is owning up to it. The longer one waits to see if anyone else notices the mistake, the more difficult it will be to explain one the error is uncovered. Owning up and accepting the responsibility shows a strength of character. Further, making suggestions and taking the initiative on fixing the mistake immediately after can diminish the damage done by it.
Making unnecessary excuses instead of taking action and correcting the mistake is another path to avoid. No one likes the quintessential excuse-maker; everyone wants to see the problem resolved as soon as possible. Becoming the problem-solver in the time of turbulence is one of the most effective ways to prove that that person has a vision for personal success and will not anything deter him or her from it.
Some people take their self-made errors close to their hearts and succumb to the surrounding criticisms. These people watch their careers suffer as a result of their inability to learn and move on. It is important to not get beat up and learn to forgive oneself in order to gain future success. Instead of taking the negative comments close to heart, it is possible to learn from the criticism, understand the shortcomings and be encouraged to improve. Criticism can actually be a good tool to highlight the areas of improvement and set future goals to eliminate the current shortcomings.
After making a mistake, one should get his or her mindset on the path to success. In other words, thinking about strengths and not weaknesses is a great way to recover. As one of the more popular sayings goes, “Successful people don’t try too hard to improve what they’re bad at. They capitalize on what they’re good at.” Identifying opportunities to capitalize on strength is the way to get out of a losing state of mind and start feeling good about oneself.
Persistence can trumps talent and that is a fact. If a mistake was made because of the lack of confidence or experience, it is very possible to succeed where one had not succeeded before by trying again. Natural talent can only go so far and most people cannot rely on talent alone to succeed. Career success comes with time and persistence; hard work pays off.
One should recognize that some mistakes aren't mistakes at all. Too many people spend time fearing and trying to avoid making mistakes. But in actuality, people can become so concerned with failing, they never take any risks or opportunities that can lead them to success. Making mistakes can a vital step to improvement. Taking training courses on how to deal with mistakes can be a proactive way of setting oneself up for any situation is a good strategy to take, in order to not be taken by surprise by the first downfall or mistake.
All in all, lessons can be learned from every mistake. Leaders and success stories emerge in the aftermath of those mistakes. It is important to recognize that dealing with mistakes is even more important than always being afraid of ever making them.
