How do you handle messing up (i.e. bombing a job interview, being at fault in a car accident?

5 comments

1. It haunts me for the rest of my life.

2. [removed]

3. If it’s something interpersonal, like I hurt someone unintentionally or something like that, then it haunts me.

   If it’s work related then it’s usually easily fixed and not a big deal.

   If it’s a silly mistake that only really effects me I get pretty annoyed at myself but drop it pretty quickly.

4. I wallow in guilt and shame by reliving it over and over in my mind until the next thing happens that I screw up.

   But I *try* to admit when I was wrong, offer a sincere apology if necessary, fix any problems I created, not beat myself up too hard, and think about how to avoid the mistake in the future.

5. shit happens , it’s life

   if there’s something i can learn from it i’ll learn, if it was just an unfortunate circumstance i keep moving. no point in making a shitty situation worse by feeling bad about what i can’t change

   —-all of this along with making things right if my actions hurt someone else