What do you do when you totally messed something up at work? Do you admit the mistake? Do you hide? Do you make excuses? Blame someone else?We are all going to make mistakes at work. It’s inevitable. Some of us will make a lot of mistakes. Learning from the mistakes is what will set you apart from your peers.
Yesterday I messed something up at work. I over-heard my team lead talking to another banker about it. They were concerned about the legal issues that could result from my action but didn’t know who made the mistake. The minute I heard their conversation, I walked over to my lead’s desk and said “Oh no! That was me! How do I resolve this issue?!”
It turns out that my mistake wasn’t as big of a deal as we initially thought it was. From this mistake, I learned how to handle certain legal issues associated with a client passing away, which I have not yet had to deal with in my banking career. I will definitely not forget how to handle this if/when the situation arises again.
I’m really glad I stepped up and admitted my mistake right away. Now I have no guilty feelings or secrets to hide. I also learned a lot yesterday that I wouldn’t have learned if I didn’t readily fess up. I’m hoping that my confession also built trust and respect with my lead so that she knows that I will take responsibility for my actions and fix them when I make more mistakes in the future.
How do YOU handle mistakes at work?
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If anyone can relate to where you're at in your career, it's Nicole Crimaldi: Nicole spent 5 years in corporate America, switched career paths, worked at a start-up, survived a layoff and is now self-employed. Nicole believes that career satisfaction is a huge part of overall happiness. Therefore, she started Ms. Career Girl to help other women get off the treadmill and onto a more fulfilling path.
{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
Good for you for ‘fessing up! That takes courage, but you’re right — it’s the right thing to do.
I’ve messed up simply by not knowing exactly what I’m supposed to do and, like you, I admitted my mistake with a red face and tried to do everything I could to 1) correct the mistake and 2) learn the right way to do things so it never happens again.
I make mistakes at work. I make more than I should and I work in accouting. That is dangerous territory. I have worked in accounting for seven years and have never had this problem before. I think I am tip toeing around and my fear of making a mistake is hindering my accuracy/productivity. I will readily speak up if I make a mistake and ask how to correct an issue. My boss simply detests the idea I have made a mistake regardless of the level of responsibility I take for it. I don’t know how much longer I’ll be here whether I voluntarily go somewhere else or I get fired. I’m not sure what to do.
I’m an admin and constantly make little mistakes. I really don’t like the job and maybe that’s why. I used to do it before and when I enjoyed it I was so much better at it. It doesn’t help the lady I work with will always point them out, but when she makes a mistake it’s not that big of a deal. I’m ready to quit.
Hi,
Saw your message and I am going through the SAME thing……luckily not in an Accountants office.
I have been through a trauma but this is NO excuse….I should be able to cope, but I am not.
I KEEP making mistakes to the point that I am now able to say I will definatly make at least ONE PER DAY…..
My boss is NOT happy, even though she doesnt say but I can tell and I feel very, very embarressed and sad cos she used to be a friend and gave me a job. I cry every evening I get home.
I wish I didnt keep doing it as I am SURE she is going to ask me to leave and that will destroy me…….
I am very vunerable and can talk to no one about it…..not even my sisters….they think I am just going through a phase.
I hope things have sorted themselves out for you since you posted your note.
Good Day Ladies,
I understand exactly what you guys are going thru I make mistakes every single day and my boss its just upset at the fact I make them, I try to be honest and try to go with him for everything.
Last week I had a huge deppression because I though i was going to get fired because of so many mistakes. Especially when I have someone that doesn’t even work with me pointing everything out, she goes thru my voicemail and aggravates me constantly,I am pretty sure she checks my emails too.
I tried to not make mistakes but I am doing work for two, I’m doing invoicing, shipping, errands, and everything my boss can come up with.
Please advice me. I know we all make mistakes but this chick won’t leave me alone, she is buddy buddy with the boss, so he believes her, she was actually the one that was doing the work with him and now her husband only wants her to work for him, but she does a lot of things behind his back
I need help., I’m thinking of getting another job but its simple hard, or my deppression is stronger.
I can related to all of you. I am in the Banking field and it’s so easy to make mistakes but when you start depositing monies into someones elses account that can be a PROBLEM!,, I have only done this about 2 or 3 times but my supervisor really gets on me and writes me up Its an easy fix but it doesnt look good for the bank or to the customer that we are taking care of there money ..but it burns my butt when they dont have there account numbers and expect us to look up there name when we think there name is John wood and it’s John Locke ..that can be bad! and that’s just what I did ! I fixed the problem but my supervisor wrote me up cause this was the second offense in 5 months …I am so on guard know that I try to be very careful of who’s in front of me and if you all make deposits to your bank try and have your acccount number on the dep ticket! Thanks !