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They say, “To err is human.” Ask any smart saleswoman who has bungled a sales call or young executive who forgot she had a meeting at 10a.m. and she’ll tell you it was a learning experience. We learn from our mistakes. But when you have to admit your mistakes, how should you handle it?

First of all, the mistake has to be worth admitting to. Confessing, “I wasted $5 in postage trying to figure out how to use the postage meter” is probably not necessary. But if your lapse of judgment impacts other people and your own conscience, that’s different. Confessing, “I used office postage to mail my bills,” is more serious.

When you admit to a mistake, frame it in time. Make it clear the mistake was in the past, that you learned lessons from it you’ll apply in the present, and you’ll never repeat it in the future. Here is an extreme example but it illustrates the point. When reporters write about criminals appearing in court, they always mention the offenders’ crimes (that’s the past).  Then they write about attitudes (that’s the present). Why? We, the readers, want to know if the perpetrators are remorseful and have learned from their terrible actions so they won’t repeat them in the future. Framing the mistake in the past present and future is logical and reassuring.

Keep your admission of a mistake timely, clear and concise. You don’t owe anyone lengthy, gut-wrenching explanations. As an adult, admit your mistake and go on. That’s a smart thing to do.

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This entry was posted on Tuesday, July 29th, 2008 at 5:30 am and is filed under Podcast. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.