I Have NEVER Made a Mistake!

We all know this person. We may even be this person. Do any of us like this person? It’s common for people to confuse high self-esteem with the myth of perfection. The difference lies in how the person perceives a problem and how they address it.

One with high self-esteem will see the problem as a challenge and take responsibility to face it - knowing it’s a prime opportunity to learn, grow, move on and be better for it. While a person who needs to be perfect will find another person or event to blame and make it known that it’s not their fault. This perfect person may even keep track of others’ imperfections in an attempt to deflect any notice of their own - gulp - imperfections.

Do you work with either of these people? Both? Which type exemplifies leadership qualities and gives the best of themselves to their organization?

No one has to like everyone else in the office, but businesses will get the most out of their workforce when employees are more concerned about what they learned from their last mistake and less concerned that the mistake occurred and who is to blame.

Read a column by Liz Ryan as posted on BusinessWeek Online: Cursed by a “Perfect" Colleague

Posted by Amy Dennis, Career Management Coordinator, The H.S. Group