Mistakes are inevitable, there is no doubt about that.
Unfortunately, knowing mistakes are possible doesn’t make them suck any less.
…Somebody had to say it.
However, there is one method that can help keep mistakes from pushing you back. That method is taking those inevitable mistakes and turning them into opportunities.
Mistakes aren’t always a bad thing. They can teach you so much about the world that you would have never been able to pick up from any blog, tutorial, or textbook. Learning to learn from mistakes is a vital and underrated tool for any entrepreneur to have handy.
Here is how we recommend turning your mistakes into second chances!
- Admit that they’re going to happen.
- Mistakes happen. We’re all human. The sooner you come to terms with the fact that they are bound to happen, the more prepared you will be when they do.
- Accept them once they do happen.
- As the iconic Hannah Montana once said, “everybody makes mistakes, everybody has those days.” Learning to accept mistakes as they come will help to avoid any unnecessary emotional exhaustion from them.
- Reflect on what went wrong.
- Be sure to take any and all aspects of the situation into account. Whether they had to do with external or internal issues, anything that had a part to play in the matter should be considered and evaluated.
- Consider the part that you may have played in the mishap.
- Don’t convince yourself that it’s impossible that it was your fault. It may not have completely been your fault, but it’s highly likely that you may have had something to do with it (and there is nothing wrong with that!)
- Create a plan moving forward.
- Now that you have identified the issue and where it came from, it’s time to make a game plan. What happened that could have been prevented? How can you avoid it in the future? What can you do differently to make similar situations easier?
What tools do you use to help turn mistakes into opportunities? Let us know in the comments!