We’ve talked plenty about what to do when you’re faced with client screw-ups and mistakes made in interpreting client wishes. What we’ve not talked much about is what to do when we make mistakes. We do, you know. Not every action is directly related to someone else’s inaction or miscommunication. Sometimes, we just screw up. So what do you do when you’re the one with the red face?
Own It. You did it. Own up to it. Nothing is more childish or more annoying than your attempts to cover the gaffe or worse, your attempts to blame it on someone else. Having been in numerous situations where the client or a colleague will blame someone else or worse, turn the blame back around, I can say these people look way unprofessional.
Ask yourself how you’d feel if you approached someone who messed up and didn’t admit to it. Would you trust that person again? It can only benefit you to take the blame when it belongs to you. You’ll be a better person for it.
Fix It. Apologize once, then get to the business of fixing your mistake. Oh, and don’t be crass enough to fix it at your client’s expense. If you really messed up, you really need to set it right. You may not get the client business again, but you stand a better chance of it if you don’t apologize more than necessary and you don’t belabor the point.
Move On. I’m one to talk, for I take mistakes personally, and I agonize over them. Don’t do it. Just fix it and move on. It’s all too easy to find negative feedback these days. People who have no clue how you work are just dying to tell you how to fix your process. Clients who aren’t interested in paying you are itching to find a way to get the work for free, even if it means lying about your abilities or stretching the truth. If you let that stuff get to you, you’ll slowly kill your career and your self-esteem. Remember – not all clients and writers are a good match. Shed the notion that you suck and go find your next project.
Look Back and Learn. No, I’m not deliberately contradicting myself, but you do need to get past your emotional assessment of the situation first. Once you have settled yourself down, go back over it to see where you could possibly improve things the next time out.
Mind you, be careful of all situations in which you take blame and fix mistakes. There are clients out there who would be only too happy to take advantage of your good nature and get something for nothing. Only you can really judge if you’ve made a mistake (and be honest with yourself). But when it’s obvious to everyone, including you, that you messed up, own it, fix it, and learn something from it.
Good advice, Lori. Sometimes the way you handle a mistake can not only keep the client’s business but actually make them more loyal and more apt to refer others. Everyone is so used to people NOT taking responsibility for their mistkes that when we do, most clients appreciate and respect it.
I agree, Lillie. It’s not only professional, it’s the grownup thing to do. If you say, “I did it. I’m sorry. I’ll fix it if I can”, you’re more likely to leave a favorable impression than if you use tons of excuses or worse, write the client off as a hack.
I couldn’t agree with you more, Lori. One of the things I hated most about Cubicle Life was the backstabbing and blaming that went on. It’s still lurking here in the Freelance Homeland, but it’s not always lurking in the air.
If it’s my bad, I might feel really stupid, but I’m the first to admit it was my mistake. When it’s someone else’s mistake, unless I’m asked to compensate for it, I like not having to hear about it. Unlike in the cubicle cages, where it became a five day drama only resolved by ditching it for the next crisis. 🙂
This is great advice, Lori. It’s great that you advised us to admit to a mistake we own, but warned us not to go so far we’re taken advantage of. That could be easy to do sometimes. 🙂
Smiles,
Michele