Sorry – Photo credit: huffingtonpost.com
So you messed up…at work! You made a mistake, pulled the wrong report, did not show up to the quarterly departmental meeting, or used one of your supposedly innocent white lies and got caught…Should you hang your cute head low and say I’m sorry (only to be sorry you did), or fake the funk and not let anyone see you sweat, no matter the offense?
I’ve witnessed both extremes at work. The very humble employee who was too quick to apologize for anything and everything, and the very proud one who would rather forego dessert than ever admit their wrongs (who lets go of dessert, really?). I’ve found a lot of it boils down to personality adjustments, and to just realizing there’s a way to apologize at work that is neither humiliating nor coward. And as tricky as it may seem, there are tricks to the whole saying “I’m sorry” thing!
My $0.05: Saying sorry sucks (I still haven’t admitted to Dear hubby the effects of my shoe addiction). Yet what sucks more is to lack leadership, especially at work. So suck it up, and instead of just saying “I’m sorry”, admit how your behavior has affected your boss, co-worker or team, and offer up a way to make it up. It’ll make you sound honest, brave and even ingenious! Now that’s a strong apology…
How do you apologize after screwing up at work? Are you sorry you said sorry?
The Corporate Sis.
Saying sorry at work is okay and it shows that we can acknowledge our faults. Coworkers will have more respect for someone who says I’m sorry for what they did wrong. Now, saying sorry too many times is another issue because they might start to loss confidence in your work.
Hi Adler! I agre, there’s definitely a balance to maintain when apologizing at work. Saying sorry once or twice is ok, but being overly humble is definitely a no-no. And it can be very hard to recuperate once your reputation is damaged at work. Great comment!
Saying you are sorry can be a humbling experience but its better to do it sooner than later. But also try to avoid just apologizing for apology’s sake. Make sure you mean it. Great post!
Absolutely, and it is especially a big issue for women. We tend to say sorry for a lot of things we shouldn’t really be sorry for. I know I’ve had to mentally “check” myself to avoid saying sorry for everything at work lol. Really gives the impression you’re not as competent as you really are. Thanks for the comment!
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