JOH ROGERSON | Career Expert | CONTACT
One thing a lot of people don’t tell you is that upper management is no joke!
Whether you’re running a business, a sporting team, a church, a political party, or a state police force currently in the midst of a generationally damaging erosion of public trust. It’s not easy at the top.
People are living busy lives and being pulled in many directions with demanding responsibilities. How can someone balance all it on a daily basis? And when things do get a little off-kilter – how do we recover?
When was the last time you messed up at work? You know, like writing an embarrassing typo in an email, sending your boss to the wrong address for a meeting, or going on a family holiday to Hawaii while record-breaking climate change-aided bushfires destroyed thousands of homes and businesses which in turn resulted in the tragic deaths of a devastating number of frontline workers and heroic community members.
We all know that nobody is perfect, but bosses and CEOS are often expected to be. This is mostly because they are paid very handsomely for the responsibilities that come with being in charge.
But people are human. Even those that have managed to rise to the very top of the ranks in their chosen field due to the presumption that they are very good at their job. These people make mistakes too, and sometimes they say the wrong thing.
These mishaps don’t have to be the end of the world! Every mistake is a learning opportunity, and it’s up to you to take advantage, providing you don’t lose your job because of the humiliation you’ve caused the institution you have been elected to represent.
Here’s what to do when you mess up at work.
1. Admit it early
If you fuck up, you’ve gotta show up.
2. Take a moment to recuperate
Disappear from public view and tell your media advisors to tell the public to wait for a press conference where you will not be taking questions from anyone except reporters with a proven track record of protecting your reputation.
3. Accept the consequences with your chin up
Explain what went wrong, and accept them. Avoid sharing how things they went wrong and make the public wait to find that out.
4. Address any burned bridges
Insist that your employees should still be allowed to take part in community events that exist purely to protest against the kind of oversight and cruel indifference that you are being accused of.
5. Playfully quote Taylor Swift lyrics in completely inappropriate circumstances
This is the ultimate get-of-jail-free-card! No matter what you are facing up to, quoting Taylor Swift will make you seem human and fun. And fun humans cannot be held responsible for gross negligence or harbouring a toxic culture that can only result in tragedy.
