3 Strategies to Overcome Business Mistakes.

Over the past 20+ years of entrepreneurship, there have been times I’ve wished for an invisibility cloak so I would never have to show my face around my peers again.

Most of the time, my mistakes were fairly low stakes—no one dies when you forget your extra camera battery at a photoshoot, after all.

And yet… it can be terribly hard to overcome these bumps in our business road. Perfectionism is a soul-sucking monster that feeds off our guilt and shame.

Do you have a strategy for how you find your way back from rough business waters? Most people don’t. Most hope to simply avoid mistakes altogether and never consider how they will handle it when things do go wrong.

But you should. Because things will inevitably go wrong.

While nothing can guarantee a smooth ride for your business, a smart strategy will minimize bumps so that you can keep cruising and avoid having to get a fake identity in Mexico because you done messed up, bad.

Intellectually, we know that mistakes are normal and necessary for learning, yet when they happen, it’s easy to get derailed. For some, this can lead to disillusionment, confusion, and a strong desire to withdraw.

Making a mistake in your business can make you question your abilities and your self-worth. It can get pretty dark.

Thankfully, in recent years, there has been a rise in entrepreneurial support groups and advocacy towards taking a more gentle approach with ourselves as we navigate the uncertain waters of entrepreneurship. My friend and Gentle Business Coach, Ashley Beaudin, often advises leading your business with care, kindness, and empathy for yourself FIRST. The originator of The Imperfect Boss movement that blew up Instagram 8 years ago, this Ottawa treasure reminds her followers to centre themselves in their business so that they can build something gentle and sustainable rather than a demanding business that leads to emotional burnout.

It’s a smart strategy for heart-led business owners, especially those who feel lost at sea thanks to navigational mistakes.

3 Strategies to Overcome Business Mistakes.

Smart strategies start with anchor points. These are the pillars you can cling to, whether things are rough in the wider business sea or you’re experiencing turbulence from mistakes made closer to home. Either way, these three strategies can help you hold on, overcome, and find success again during turbulent business times.

Strategy 1: Breathe Deeply

That might sound trite, but study after study has shown that breathing deeply genuinely helps to reduce our stress levels. According to stress.com, “Deep breathing increases the supply of oxygen to your brain and stimulates the parasympathetic nervous system, which promotes a state of calmness. Breathing techniques help you feel connected to your body—it brings your awareness away from the worries in your head and quiets your mind.”

Breathing deeply helps you stop the panic cycle that might be happening in your head after a mistake has been made.

Instead of feeling like running from the problem, it helps to anchor you in your body, so that you can handle the issue with greater clarity and from a place that is proactive, not reactive. That’s particularly important if you are inclined to react with a lot of emotion right away.

Until you can calm your nervous system down, you should not make any decisions about how you will address the issue or mistake. Reacting prematurely is a recipe for regret, so give yourself permission to quiet yourself before focusing outward.

Strategy 2: Remember Who You Are

For a lot of us, our work often feels like our identity. It isn’t.

Work is something you output. The value of your existence is not simply about that output; you are worth so much more than what you produce or the role you fulfil.

Sure, you may have made a monumental mistake—the mother of all mistakes. But very rarely are mistakes in business life-defining moments. We think they are because we tend to only remember extreme examples of when the proverbial s**t hit the fan.

Remembering your value as a human, friend, partner, mentor, mother, sister, volunteer, or chess champion will help hold things in perspective during turbulent business times.

Strategy 3: Let Small Things Be Small Things and Big Things Be Big Things

If the situation is really that critical, acknowledge it. It does you no good to downplay critical issues, nor does it help to dramatize smaller issues.

Knowing this difference and reacting with the appropriate level of action is a key strategy for finding your anchor points. If it pushes emotional buttons too much, you may overreact and make the situation worse. If you fail to recognize something severe, you may harm your reputation permanently. Neither outcome is desirable.

Instead, carefully weigh out the issue. Who is actually affected, and how big is that effect? What emotions might be out of alignment with the actual issue? Are you (or someone else) reacting from a place of defensiveness?

While your feelings are valid, a wise businesswoman knows how to focus her attention on the big things while letting the small things go.

Remember, every business owner makes mistakes.

It’s what you do next that can make all the difference in the aftermath.

By breathing deeply, remembering who you are, and letting little things be little things and big things be big things, you can strategically navigate turbulent waters and find the anchor points that can pull you through your business mistakes.