Scott Berkun writes, "You can only learn from a mistake after you admit you've made it... But for many reasons admitting mistakes is difficult." The following checklist can be use to help in learning from mistakes:
- Accepting responsibility makes learning possible.
- Don't equate making mistakes with being a mistake.
- You can't change mistakes, but you can choose how to respond to them.
- Growth starts when you can see room for improvement.
- Work to understand why it happened and what the factors were.
- What information could have avoided the mistake?
- What small mistakes, in sequence, contributed to the bigger mistake?
- Are there alternatives you should have considered but did not?
- What kinds of changes are required to avoid making this mistake again?
- What kinds of change are difficult for you?
- How do you think your behavior should/would change if you were in a similar situation again?
- Work to understand the mistake until you can make fun of it (or not want to kill others that make fun).
- Don't over-compensate: the next situation won't be the same as the last.
Credits: Copyright © 2005 Scott Berkun - Read complete article, #44 - How to learn from your mistakes, July 17 2005.