Monday, February 25, 2008
I Just Said Something Embarassing. Now What?!
Today I was talking with a potential new website vendor, and I said something profoundly - well - embarassing. (I’ll spare you the gory details and take my own advice.) I’ve blogged on this before but it’s worth repeating. There will always be those times that no matter how conscious we are of our words—it just turns out badly.
Your credibility, however, rises significantly by what you do immediately after the “oops.”
How To Recover:
* acknowledge your mistake
* apologize—sincerely
* do not retell the tale; ever
* don’t dwell on what happened
Everyone says embarassing, dumb, thoughtless, and hurtful things during their lifetime. When you can stop beating yourself up - and clearly think through alternatives for next time - your team will see a good example of leadership skill. And that, after all, is what you want them to learn.
Remember, it’s all about The Recovery.
Until next time...live like you mean it!
Marjorie