So, you have just realised that you have made a mistake. This will raise a whole host of emotions:
| Anger
| Embarrassment
|
| Guilt
| Shame
|
It’s OK. Everyone makes mistakes, it’s human nature. Mistakes can be used as a good opportunity to learn, grow, nurture and lead.
It is helpful to understand why mistakes are important and how to use this to your advantage. As humans, we try not to make mistakes as we can see this as a sign of failure, but in fact, the opposite is true. Mistakes can offer an opportunity to showcase our character, taking the first step in admitting
you have made a mistake demonstrates your strength of character and potential leadership skills.
Often when we make mistakes it can be a massive dent in our self-esteem and can make us worry that we may be seen as weak for failing. But in fact, facing that fear and learning to overcome this hurdle can really help your growth.
Here are my (tried and tested!) Top tips for learning from your mistakes:
Tip 1 – Learn from your mistake
Don’t worry if you make the same mistake repeatedly (which is a very familiar pattern when coding in technology). The more times you make the mistake, the less time will be spent making the same mistake again, as you will learn very quickly to find another solution.
Read more advice on the Stemettes Zine >>
Tip 2 – Teach others
Flip it around. This can create a perfect opportunity to teach others what you have learnt and shows your strength to admit you’ve made a mistake BUT that you’ve learnt from it and want to help others.
Tip 3 – Acknowledge
Acknowledging that you have made a mistake is one of the most important things you can do. Don’t ignore the fact that you have made a mistake or blame others, this will only set you up to repeat the mistake again.
Tip 4 – Take Responsibility
If your mistake impacts other people, take responsibility. If you need to apologise then go ahead and do so, this is a great demonstration of courage.
Tip 5 – Make Mistakes
Feel comfortable with making mistakes and use all the useful tips above to overcome them. Coreen John is a Business Intelligence Engineer at ASOS.com. In her spare time, she loves music, dancing, knitting and working out
ASOS is hiring for lots of roles in tech and across the business — find out more here >>
This article was written by Coreen John at ASOS.
