Can Your Team Make It Right?

We all make mistakes. If we didn’t, we wouldn’t be human.

Sometimes the mistakes bring dire consequences. Others seem less important.

The challenge comes in whether or not your team can recover and make it right.

Houstan Texans and Dallas Cowboys football fumble

Image by AJ Guel

The Fumble

Have you ever watched a football game where the offensive throws a pass and makes the completion only to be hit hard by the defensive squad? During the hit, the receiver loses control of the ball and fumbles it.

Do you know what happens after the hit and fumble? Both teams scramble to recover the ball. The offensive team goes especially hard, knowing a mistake was made. They’re attempting to make it right.

Now It’s About You

Now, what does your team do when a mistake occurs? Do they scramble hard to rectify the situation or do they sit on the sidelines pointing fingers and saying “It’s his fault! He didn’t do his job.”?

I hope it’s the prior and not the latter.

But if it’s the latter, I’ve got a few pieces of advice for you. You can improve your team and they can help to correct the mistakes that happen.

What Can Be Done

Like I said, there’s good news. You can improve the performance of your team. Even when a mistake happens.

How can you do this?

  • Give encouragement after a mistake happens: Errors are going to happen. Miscommunication, an errant email, or a failed project. It’s the nature of the beast. How you react to a failure will determine how the team reacts. If you build up your team after a mistake they’ll feel more comfortable in trying to correct the situation.
  • Be the example: Now, don’t go and fail on purpose. That’s not the point. But if you do fail, be the first to own up to the failure. Show the team a great example. And then go and tackle the failure and show them how, even if you fail, things can be made right. They’re looking to you for leadership, give it to them.
  • Give your team the opportunity to succeed: Sometimes what looks like a failure really isn’t a failure. Don’t declare a failure until it actually is. If you tell them they’ve failed before they’ve given it their all, they will have failed.

It’s important to have a team that will recover quickly and get to the task of correcting a mistake. Build up your team in the right way and you’ll have team members chomping at the bit to be problem solvers. Don’t hold them back. Set them free.

Question: When a mistake happens, how do you make it right? Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.

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