We all make mistakes and wrong decisions, and yes, we also fail and experience setbacks at work. I do not think there exists a business leader who has never made a mistake or wrong decision. Sometimes, this leads to a termination of our job. As bad as this sounds and feels, it is not the end of the world. If you look at those very top business leaders who have a long career behind them, you will find that most of them have, despite all their successes, also failed sometimes during their careers. Indeed, some have even been fired because of this. However, even though a failure is not something we want to brag about in our track record, it can also, at best, turn into something positive.
In the business world, failing can also be considered as an opportunity to develop professionally, provided you can deal with it in the right way, not necessarily only as a negative experience. Failures are almost by definition inevitable in order for us to grow and become better at our work. No business leader has 100 % correct answers to all questions. Sometimes, they do not even know all the questions, but a decision must be made. Sometimes, they must take calculated risks that are then realized and which may, in the worst scenario, lead to failure. Someone who says they have never failed probably never made any difficult or probably any other decisions, either. This is not a particularly wanted feature in a business leader who is expected to make demanding business decisions under challenging conditions and with insufficient information. And these kinds of situations are like a typical day at work for any CEO or high-ranking executive. I guess sometimes we all experience such a day, so most can relate to what this means.
Sometimes, when we give it our best try and base our actions on a thorough, well-thought professional decision-making process, we can, unfortunately, still turn out to be wrong, and we can fail. The number one thing for any of us when things go wrong is to take responsibility for our actions. Only then can we start to correct the situation credibly. The right mindset, attitude, and willpower mean the world here. If we can overcome our failure, we tend to come out stronger, wiser, more knowledgeable, more resilient, and resourceful. We are now better prepared to analyse and face new challenging situations. We learn to think more critically and become better in our decision-making and at handling and conquering complex challenges in our work.
If we can recover quickly and learn from what happened, we tend to get a second chance. In fact, there even exist recruiting situations where the experience of failure, therefore, is considered a positive thing, even an advantage, and it may even sometimes be a must-have experience on your CV to be chosen for the job in question. So, failing in your work need not be a catastrophe or the end of your career. It may, at best, be the start of a new promising career.
However, it is good to acknowledge that it is not only about what people are doing that makes them grow into good business leaders. It is also about what the company culture is like where they are working. A company culture that allows for mistakes and simultaneously encourages employees to explore, speak their minds, and come up with new ideas and then gives their employees the benefit of the doubt and the freedom and independence to do their work will get well-motivated and professionally continuously developing employees. This will, in the long run, most likely benefit the company big time. This is a company culture that fosters great business leaders.
Compare this to a company culture where you get immediately punished for making a mistake. In such a company, people will become afraid to take any chances or try new ideas. Instead, they will pay attention to playing it safely every time. A company culture like this will eventually stifle all entrepreneurial spirit, motivation and innovative activity in the company. This is a company culture that fosters people who only follow orders and are afraid of doing anything else than minimizing risks and avoiding difficult decision-making.
So, the kind of business environment and company culture you work in can have a significant impact on your long-term career. A company allowing for mistakes while encouraging and supporting their employees can make their potential blossom and even make them surpass themselves, eventually growing into great business leaders. Companies punishing their employees for making a mistake never even give the potential and enthusiasm a chance. When considering your next career move, please remember to check the company culture of a potential new employer in this respect.