Years ago as a young product manager, I made two related mistakes.
Nothing huge, or threatening, just a stupid mistake that would have been avoided by a bit of due diligence, thought, and experience.
All three were missing, but what was there was the overconfidence of youth, an action for the sake of action mindset, a level of intoxication with the first trappings of corporate power, and perhaps a (big) touch of arrogance.
Second mistake I made was to try and dodge when the error was called out.
That second mistake created, in the space of 5 minutes, what has become the bedrock of my personal credo ever since.
- Always take absolute responsibility when it is yours, or that of your team if you are the leader. We all make mistakes, those who do not are not doing enough, but only a fool makes the same mistake twice.
- When you make a blue, if you are the first to recognise it, stick your hand up, tell everyone of the error, explain why it happened, and what you have learnt. This can be very uncomfortable, but when you point out your own blues, it leaves those who would hang you with very little rope.
- When it is necessary to administer an arse-kicking, as it sometimes is, always, always, do it in private. Administering the kick in public adds humiliation to the mix, demeans you, and ensures that the kickee will never respect you again, and if they are any good, will leave quickly.
That incident was now 40 years ago, a lifetime, but I remember it as if it were yesterday, and have diligently lived by the three simple rules for all that time.
