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![](3D"http://www.bizactions.com/content/images//rewards%20sm.jpg"=20)
Celebrate,=20
Reward
Employees'=20
=
Mistakes |
A recent cartoon =
(Mike=20
Baldwin's "Cornered") shows a boss seated behind =
his=20
desk, and an unfortunate employee standing. The =
boss=20
says, "It's OK, everyone makes mistakes. Look at =
me. I=20
hired you."
Making mistakes =
is part of=20
the human condition. And certainly making =
mistakes is=20
part of the business and work experience. =
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Wanted: New=20
Word for Mistake=20
![](3D"http://www.bizactions.com/content/images//mistake%20sign%20lrg.jpg=)
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| "Mistakes are the=20
vehicle for growth," says Alan Lurie. =
Lurie brings=20
to the topic of mistakes at work a unique=20
background and perspective. He's a=20
non-denominational ordained Rabbi, and =
he's=20
Managing Director at Grubb and Ellis, a =
national=20
real estate service firm.=20
Lurie also =
is author of=20
Five Minutes on Mondays in which =
he=20
writes: "With experience and guidance, we =
discover=20
that mistakes can, in fact, often be =
turned around=20
and transformed into a positive growth =
experience.=20
When properly handled, mistakes provide a =
means to=20
identify areas that need attention, =
improve our=20
skills...and open new avenues that may =
have=20
otherwise remained hidden."
"Mistakes, =
literally,=20
are the way one learns," Lurie explains."A =
child=20
learns to walk by falling down. That is =
literally=20
how one learns. If you are learning to =
play an=20
instrument, the correction of mistakes is =
how you=20
learn."
What to=20
do when you make a mistake? =
Lurie's=20
answer is: "Step one, simply acknowledge =
it. The=20
first gut reaction is to hide it, pretend =
it=20
didn't happen, or to blame someone else.=20
Acknowledge it without beating yourself =
up. Step=20
two is to put a plan in place to fix it. =
When you=20
say 'Here's what I'm going to do to fix =
it' I=20
think every boss in that situation will be =
appreciative."
About =
celebrating=20
mistakes, Lurie says "I love the =
idea. Most=20
people have trouble acknowledging =
mistakes. To get=20
to the level of celebrating mistakes is a =
level to=20
be at."
New word,=20
anyone? Then Lurie adds: "I wrote =
in my=20
book that maybe we need a new word for=20
mistake. Mistake means there's =
something=20
wrong with you, something wrong with what =
you've=20
done. We need a new word for these things =
that=20
happen, that we do, that are inevitable to =
being a=20
human=20
=
being. |
A couple examples =
of=20
business-world mistakes:
-- Sam Zell, now =
Tribune=20
Company Chairman and CEO, in 2007 engineered the =
heavily=20
leveraged privatization of the Chicago =
Tribune=20
parent company. The $8.2 billion leveraged deal =
turned=20
into a Chapter 11 bankruptcy in less than two =
years.=20
Recently Zell told Bloomberg Television the deal =
was a=20
mistake, and said: "By definition, if you bought =
something and it's now worth a great deal less, =
you made=20
a mistake, and I'm more than willing to say I =
made a=20
mistake."
-- Tata Motors, =
the Indian=20
company that's developed the $2,000 mini-car =
Nano, and=20
Tata's related companies go beyond encouraging=20
innovations. Tata also encourages failure. =
Business Week=20
reports the company gives a prize for =
"entrepreneurial=20
employees who tried but failed..." Two years ago =
just=20
100 entered the competition. This year 1,000 =
were=20
expected to enter.
Paul Lemberg =
encourages=20
business owners and workplace leaders to =
celebrate and=20
reward employees' mistakes. Lemberg is CEO and =
Chief=20
Business Accelerator of Axcelius, Rancho Santa =
Fe, CA.=20
He's also author of Be Unreasonable: The=20
Unconventional Way to Extraordinary Business=20
Results.
"If you don't =
fall on your=20
face both regularly and painfully, you are =
likely to end=20
up dead instead," Lemberg explains. "The only =
people not=20
making mistakes are those who play their game =
without=20
risk, without novelty and without progress." He =
adds,=20
"Doing things wrong is the number one, perhaps =
only,=20
source of innovation."
So Lemberg =
advises managers=20
and leaders not to penalize mistakes. Rather, =
encourage=20
them. Even reward them. He says, "Don't cast =
blame.=20
Commemorate mistake-makers as =
heroes."
Caution! Lemberg =
isn't=20
advocating celebrating and rewarding all =
mistakes. He=20
probably wouldn't celebrate Sam Zell's Tribune =
Company=20
mistake. As Lemberg says, "There's the smart =
mistake and=20
then there's the stupid mistake. I'm not a big =
fan of=20
stupid mistakes. I want people around me to be =
thinking=20
people. I do want people to take a risk. I still =
want=20
people thinking and coming up with new=20
ideas."
"I don't want =
employees to be=20
fearful, because fear hampers our creativity=20
dramatically," Lemberg continues. "What you =
might be=20
thinking about is rewarding people for their =
ideas=20
rather than for their mistakes. Ideas before =
they are=20
implemented are just mistakes waiting to=20
happen."
Ways to Reward=20
Employees' Mistakes. Lemberg offers a =
number of=20
ways to celebrate and reward employees'=20
mistakes.
- Give an award =
for the=20
biggest, whopping mistake-of-the-month. It =
could be=20
something silly, or something serious.
- Give employees =
a cash=20
award for doing something that was =
out-of-the-box,=20
that failed, but ultimately caused a success. =
- Put =
risk-taking,=20
mistake-makers' faces on your Website or in =
your=20
newsletter.
- Have a regular =
meeting=20
dissecting the mistakes-of-the-month. Try to =
learn=20
from these mistakes.
Again, Lemberg =
isn't=20
advocating rewarding or celebrating sloppiness =
or=20
carelessness. "I'm talking about employees who =
think=20
things through and have it come out wrong. Or do =
something experimental and have it not work out, =
do=20
something outside of the box and have it be a =
flaming,=20
terrible error. It is only by enabling that, =
that you=20
get the other kind of mistakes that turn out =
like=20
[3-M's] Post-It Notes," he says.
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