How to Learn From Early Mistakes

I Was Wrong. AI Helped Me See It. And I realized that my judgment wasn’t as sharp as I thought. I started working with a new audit client. Something felt off. They gave short answers. Provided weak documentation. And dodged some of my questions. My gut told me something wasn’t right. I was convinced they were hiding something. So, I did what many auditors do— I dug deeper, determined to find the problem. But here’s where I went wrong: I wasn’t testing a theory. I was looking for proof of what I already believed. That’s not good. But it happens. We’re human. So, I took a step back. I ran the scenario through AI. I asked it to challenge my thinking. To poke holes in my reasoning. To force me to consider what else could be true. And that’s when it hit me— I was chasing a problem that didn’t exist. There was no fraud. No deception. Just poor documentation and a nervous client who had been burned by auditors before. I had let bias cloud my judgment. And that’s a problem. So, I admitted it. I owned up to my mistake. And I had a real conversation with my client. That moment taught me lessons I won’t forget: 1. Admit mistakes early. It’s hard, but it builds trust, not weakness. 2. Use AI wisely. It’s not there to replace judgment— it’s there to challenge it. 3. Pause before acting. Rushing = blind spots. Reflection = better judgment. 4. Listen to others. Clients, colleagues, even AI. Different perspectives matter. 5. Apologize sincerely. A real apology doesn’t just fix relationships, it strengthens them. Mistakes will happen. But how you recover makes all the difference. That’s why I built Audit Leverage— to help auditors challenge assumptions, analyze root causes, and get it right before it’s too late. 💬 Ever had AI make you rethink something?👇

Early in my career, when I shared the story of a workshop that completely bombed (an email announcing layoffs arrived in everyone's inbox during day 1 lunch of a two-day program -- and I had no idea how to handle this), three women immediately reached out to share their own "disaster" stories. We realized we'd all been carrying shame about normal learning experiences while watching men turn similar setbacks into compelling leadership narratives about risk-taking and resilience. The conversation that we had was more valuable than any success story I could have shared. As women, we are stuck in a double-bind: we are less likely to share our successes AND we are less likely to share our failures. Today, I'm talking about the latter. Sharing failure stories normalizes setbacks as part of growth rather than evidence of inadequacy. When we women are vulnerable about their struggles and what they learned, it creates permission for others to reframe their own experiences. This collective storytelling helps distinguish between individual challenges and systemic issues that affect many women similarly. Men more readily share and learn from failures, often turning them into evidence of their willingness to take risks and push boundaries. Women, knowing our failures are judged more harshly, tend to hide them or frame them as personal shortcomings. This creates isolation around experiences that are actually quite common and entirely normal parts of professional development. Open discussion about setbacks establishes the expectation that failing is not only normal but necessary for success. It builds connection and community among women who might otherwise feel alone in their struggles. When we reframe failures as data and learning experiences rather than shameful secrets, we reduce their power to limit our future risk-taking and ambition. Here are a few tips for sharing and learning from failure stories: • Practice talking about setbacks as learning experiences rather than personal inadequacies • Share what you learned and how you've applied those lessons, not just what went wrong • Seek out other women's failure stories to normalize your own experiences • Look for patterns in women's challenges that suggest systemic rather than individual issues (and then stop seeing systemic challenges as personal failures!) • Create safe spaces for honest conversation about struggles and setbacks • Celebrate recovery and growth as much as initial success • Use failure stories to build connection and mentorship relationships with other women We are not the sum of our failures, but some of our failures make us more relatable, realistic, and ready for our successes. So let's not keep them to ourselves. #WomensERG #DEIB #failure

Embracing Failure: Lessons Learned from a Recent Experience LinkedIn is often a platform where we highlight our successes, but I believe it's equally important to share our failures and learning experiences. Allow me to take you through a recent setback and the valuable lessons it offered. Last November, our team received an invitation to respond to an RFI alongside 10 other global negotiation training companies. This opportunity came from one of the largest corporations in their industry headquartered in Europe. They sought a comprehensive global training program for 400 procurement professionals, a task well within our expertise. The RFI was extensive, leading us to submit a detailed 38-page proposal. We learned that we were shortlisted as one of the three potential suppliers. The client proposed an innovative agile procurement process, including a live workshop at their HQ. However, challenges arose from the outset. Negotiating cost compensation for our team's travel proved difficult, and scheduling the event became nearly impossible. Ultimately, the workshop shifted to a virtual format on an unfamiliar platform. Despite meticulous preparation, the workshop itself felt more like an interrogation than a collaborative session. Feedback was unexpected and critical, leaving us feeling disheartened and perplexed. During the workshop, frustration mounted within our team as we grappled with unexpected challenges and criticism. At one point, a colleague couldn't contain their exasperation and exclaimed, "If only you had spent all this time and preparation running a pilot workshop with each supplier, all of us would have saved so much time." This outburst encapsulated the frustration we felt at that moment. It underscored the hindsight realization that investing time in pilot workshops could have provided invaluable insights early on, potentially streamlining the process and avoiding the pitfalls we encountered. Following the workshop, we were informed that the client had decided to proceed without us. Their reasons? They perceived our approach as overly academic and doubted our ability to scale the workshop effectively. While disappointing, this experience provided some valuable insights: 1. Value Your Time: Don't invest significant hours in RFIs and engagements without ensuring appropriate compensation. 2. Know Your Medium: Creative workshops may not translate effectively to online formats; consider the limitations of virtual environments. 3. Clarify Expectations: Ensure clients have a clear understanding of their objectives and are prepared for the engagement. 4. As an advisor i often sit on the other side of the table and always recommend the buyer offer the supplier compensation for more time consuming proposals. Sharing this experience isn't merely about airing frustration; it's about embracing the opportunity to learn and grow. By reflecting on setbacks, we can refine our approach and ultimately achieve greater success.

I kept this quote on my office whiteboard for seven years: "Good judgment comes from experience. Experience comes from bad judgment." It reminded me daily that wisdom has a price. In 2013, I made a decision that cost us over six figures. One of our best partners sent us a client. I was certain the client needed a complete strategy overhaul. I pushed hard for it. Invested resources. Built the case. And, they hired us! They fired us three months later. The mistake? I solved the problem I wanted to solve, not the one they were paying me to fix. That failure taught me what no MBA could: ↳ Listen before you prescribe ↳ Validate before you invest ↳ Ask twice as many questions as you think you need Now when young entrepreneurs tell me they're afraid of making mistakes, I share this truth: "Your mistakes are your education." Every bad call sharpens your instincts. Every wrong decision reveals a blind spot. Every failure builds your pattern recognition. The executives who grow fastest treat mistakes as data. They document what went wrong. Extract the lesson and then apply it moving forward. Think about the leaders you admire most... they didn't get there by avoiding failure. They got there by failing faster and learning deeper than everyone else. Your next mistake won't be a setback. It's tuition for wisdom you can't buy any other way. Make the decision, take the risk, and learn the lesson. Because good judgment really does come from experience. And experience comes from bad judgment. What expensive mistake taught you the most about leadership?

My first year mistakes as a realtor (and what I learned) 📚 2.5 years ago, I made the leap from tech to real estate. I thought my analytical background would give me an edge. I was right about some things. But dead wrong about others! 🥲 Here are the mistakes that taught me the most: Mistake #1: Thinking data alone wins deals. I'd show up to listing appointments with market reports, comp analyses, and detailed spreadsheets. Sellers would nod politely, then hire the agent who simply listened to their concerns and made them feel heard. ✅ Lesson learned: People don't care how much you know until they know how much you care. Mistake #2: Trying to work with everyone I said yes to every lead. Buyers with no pre-approval. Sellers who weren't ready to move for 2 years! I was so afraid of missing out that I spread myself thin and served no one well. ✅ Lesson learned: Saying no to the wrong clients means saying yes to serving the right ones exceptionally. Mistake #3: Under-communicating Coming from tech, I assumed no news was good news. I'd work hard behind the scenes but forget to update clients. Meanwhile, they were panicking, thinking I'd disappeared. ✅ Lesson learned: In real estate, silence creates anxiety. Over-communication builds trust. Mistake #4: Focusing on transactions instead of relationships I measured success by closings. But my most successful colleagues measured success by repeat clients and referrals. ✅ Lesson learned: The best real estate business is built on relationships that extend far beyond closing day. Mistake #5: Not asking for help Pride kept me from reaching out to experienced agents. I wanted to figure everything out myself, which cost my clients time and opportunities. ✅ Lesson learned: Your ego is not more important than your client's best interests. Looking back, every mistake taught me something essential about serving families in one of life's biggest decisions. The analytical skills from tech help me evaluate markets and negotiate deals. But the heart of this business is about understanding people, building trust, and guiding families through emotional transitions. To new agents reading this: Embrace the learning curve. Your mistakes will become your greatest teachers. ✨ #realestate #realtor #realestateagent #california #lessons

Everyone’s posting their data analytics wins. Today, I'm sharing my losses. Courses didn't make me a data analyst. Real-world experience did with every failure along the way. Here’s my mistakes: • Scheduled a report with SQL errors that sent blank data to essential managers • Accidentally emailed key stakeholders the wrong file • Rushed a report with a critical formula mistake that had to be retracted and corrected • Updated a dashboard in production without proper testing, breaking visualizations for executive teams These failures taught me to: - Slow down when it matters most - Build consistent checks and processes - Test obsessively before releasing - Create safety nets for mistakes I owned those errors AND the required solutions. The truth? Every failure is an opportunity to grow. The best analysts I know aren't those who never make mistakes. Instead, it’s those who learn from them faster. What mistake taught you the most? Share below 👇 #DataAnalytics #FailForward #ProfessionalGrowth #DataLessons