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We are all human. We make mistakes.
Mistakes can be a powerful learning tool if we allow them to be. 
When we learn from our mistakes, we grow as individuals and as a society.
It is important to forgive ourselves for our mistakes, learn from them, and move forward with intention and purpose. 

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Let's define what is a mistake, as per oxford:

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"an action or judgment that is misguided or wrong."

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Mistakes are inevitable in any human-driven system. The response depends on the gravity of the mistake, whether or not it is a repeated mistake, or if attempts were made to conceal the mistake.

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If the severity is minimal, a straightforward coaching session should suffice.

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If the mistake is of moderate to high severity, then a more thorough discussion and corrective steps are required.

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If the mistake is a repeated mistake and efforts were made in the past to provide the appropriate level of support to avoid repeating the mistake, then a decision needs to be made as to whether the employee is the right fit for the role or organization.

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If efforts were made to hide the mistake, cover it up, or blame others versus owning up to the mistake, then more severe actions need to be taken. As this is a potential indication of business conduct guidelines violations and indicative of low ethics and values. Question is, why do employees hide their mistakes?  It's possible that this is the outcome of ineffective leadership and management systems. Employees are more likely to keep information to themselves if they have the impression that they cannot freely communicate with the management and leadership teams.

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What management and leadership need to do is foster a collaborative and inclusive environment where you have the appropriate management disciplines and systems in place, with an emphasis on people management. This will result in open dialogues and transparency.

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Guys. We must quit being so soft. The business world is not about joining hands and singing Kumbaya.