It is unwise to be too sure of one’s own wisdom.  It is healthy to be reminded that the strongest might weaken and the wisest might err.

– Mahatma Gandhi

Mistakes happen.  Even the most experienced person in your office has been at fault once or twice on their way to SME-status.

Whether it was a miscalculation on a financial report, forgetting to follow-up on that ad-hoc request, or including a typo in an email sent to a senior leader, we have all felt that wave of panic at one time or another.  A lot of things help drive this emotion, such as fear of embarrassment, a reprimand from your superior, or a blemish on that once spotless year-end review.

Over the years I’ve made my fair share of mistakes… but, I’ve learned the secret to dealing with a crisis is to put the situation in perspective while staying composed and focused.

For example, during my days in credit card pricing, I was responsible to maintain an inventory of approved pricing attributes.  Each month, several hundred approved strategies were expanded into several thousand potential pricing offers.  And, it was up to me to ensure that each offer was approved, correct and in-accordance with the law of the land.

In going through my routines one month, I inadvertently made a keying error – resulting in the creation of an incorrect pricing strategy and consequently, multiple incorrect pricing offers.  And as luck would have it, this one strategy was intended for use in a large direct mail effort – potentially impacting tens of thousands of pieces of mail.

Keep it in perspective. Though a serious situation, once I became aware of the problem I gave myself some peace:

• It could be worse…The pricing offer was only created and not mailed. The most serious potential damage had been avoided.
• A big mistake, yes…but, not one that will likely hinder my long-term career success.

Get composed and focused.  Gaining this perspective allowed me calm myself and immediately begin to focus on what was important: What happened?  What are the impacts – and is there time to avoid them?  Who needs to be alerted?  What needs to be done to limit the damage?

Take action.  After gathering answers to these questions and limiting the potential impact, I met with my manager to own up to the mistake.  The discussion included a description of the impact, an explanation of how I would resolve the issue now, and avoid it again in the future.  With all my bases covered I was set to go back and get dirty in the clean-up.

In conclusion, no one is perfect – but, by not being too hard on yourself in the moment, taking time to get composed and focusing on what is most important,  you can make your mistake be as painless as possible.