We need to address the elephant in the room — mistakes. They are so common, yet there’s a huge stigma attached to them. Everyone, even your favourite colleague, has made a mistake at some point in their life. So why do we hate them so much, and what are the benefits?
It is inevitable to make mistakes, especially at work. We’re often working so hard trying to impress everyone, but this actually increases the likelihood of errors occurring. In fact, most mistakes are made when we’re rushing, multi-tasking or lacking motivation and passion. Maybe you deleted a document accidentally, sent an email to the wrong recipient or even let the F-bomb slip in a meeting. Did you worry that you’d be fired afterwards?
Generally speaking, it seems that we are scared of errors, which is often a trait of Perfectionists — and it’s magnified in the workplace. According to Psychologists Martin Antony and Richard Swinson (authors of When Perfect Isn’t Good Enough), say it’s not the actual act of making mistakes, but “the assumption of consequences that we fear and are anxiety-inducing”. For example, we may fear being ridiculed, disappointing someone or appearing weak and incompetent.
Learning from Mistakes
Often finding a solution is down to trial and error — but you won’t learn until you try and just do it. Alexander Fleming (founder of Penicillin) accidentally discovered the properties of the antibiotic when examining the bacteria in a petri-dish left from a forgotten experiment. This led to a massive breakthrough in medicine, as well as in his career.
Mistakes have prospective use. We can actually learn from our failures and adapt them to future scenarios. You will be readily able to draw on previous faults so that you can problem-solve with better agility.
Teaching Strength and Courage
Making mistakes is actually empowering and makes us stronger. By admitting where you went wrong and owning it, you feel less vulnerable to error. This develops our sense of self-worth and confidence, which is essential for leadership roles in the workplace. It’s also wishful thinking to believe you will move forwards in your career without setbacks. Therefore, it’s good practice!
Avoiding Repeating Errors
The first time you do something wrong, often means you’re less likely to do it again. This helps you build up a repertoire of mistakes so that you can avoid feeling embarrassed or worried again. It’s like passing stages in a video game that allows you to progress to the next one. This is why the interviewing process can be so extensive; employers can spot the best traits in candidates. In turn, candidates will be able to give more authentic answers to questions if they incorrectly answer.
This is a psychological phenomenon noticed in exam and test settings. Often when we answer a question or guess something incorrectly, we are more likely to remember the correct answer next time. Due to the negative attachment to getting something wrong, we want to avoid failure the next time, and therefore it becomes rooted in our long-term memory.
Take More Risks
Mistakes open us up to taking positive risks. This is because you overcome the fear of apprehension, which is often greater than the reality and is accompanied by a sense of relief. Therefore, it emboldens us to think outside the box and invest in a business proposition. It can seem daunting suggesting a new project idea in your meeting, we often listen to our inner critic, and this leads to self-sabotage. So why not test the waters next time? Your suggestions could lead to a promotion or reward that’s crucial to your career.
Re-evaluate Goals and Priorities
You need to understand why you made a mistake. Doing this will help you make changes that prevent it from happening again and are more in line with your goals. For example, you missed your alarm and were late to work. So maybe you need to make some lifestyle changes to improve your body-clock and sleep patterns.
Mistakes also lead to cultivating more passion and motivation to achieve dreams for yourself instead of others. It’s often more mentally rewarding to push through so that you can map out and achieve your goals. The hurdles make success more worthy in the long-term.
Changing Mindset and Thinking
Moving on from mistakes, broadens your mind and allows you to see the bigger picture instead of minute details. Rather than narrow down on the negatives, you should put it into perspective. It builds resilience and tools to overcome life’s imperfections. This is essential to adapt to your role, become more intelligent and discover new ways to move up the ladder.
To summarise…
Mistakes are stepping stones that not only teach us about ourselves but also help us to become successful. It’s often these mistakes and setbacks that actually encourage us to take leaps of faith to boost our career. Embracing errors can actually be crucial in identifying the job role that best suits you, and gaining an upper advantage when applying for Top Dog. At the time, they might make you feel miserable and embarrassed. However, pain is often the prerequisite to success. So this is why we should embrace mistakes.
Written by Naida Allen
Naida is a Criminology and Psychology graduate who is passionate about promoting positive mental health and wellbeing. She is a creative writer/blogger and runs an online platform with a close friend called ‘Confidently Anxious’ — which aims to help others struggling with their mental health by sharing personal stories and coping tips. She currently volunteers as a Peer Mentor for young persons.
