Once you identify why a mistake occurred, how do you ensure that it won’t happen again? Here are 13 tips to help you benefit from your mistakes and the mistakes of others:
Learn from others: There are tons of books and podcasts that discuss how and why failures occur. Learn valuable lessons from them.
Don’t reinvent the wheel: Before you begin any undertaking, consider whether it’s been done before – and apply lessons learned.
Celebrate learning: Don’t blame – learn. Treat every experience as a learning opportunity in which mistakes are tolerated, feedback is welcomed, and failures are viewed as hurdles rather than roadblocks.
Learn and move on: Don’t beat yourself up for making a mistake. Everyone’s human – we prove that every day.
Live and learn: Ask yourself whether a mistake is being repeated. Making a mistake is acceptable. Just don’t let it return for an encore.
Make people comfortable: When analysing problems, focus on the act, not the individual.
Dig beneath the surface: Several factors often contribute to a failure. Therefore, don’t be impatient and shut down the discussion after the first cause is identified.
Turn talk into action: As the popular saying goes, “An ounce of action is worth a ton of theory.”
Avoid being narrow-minded: Many times, a lesson in one area can be applied to another. For example, a lesson in sports can be applied to business.
Optimise the learning experience: Strike a balance between the point at which you review a situation versus waiting so long that you forget the details.