Are your employees really learning from their mistakes?

They say failure is the best teacher, allowing us to learn from our mistakes. However research has shown that this may not always be the case

CREDIT: This is an edited version of an article that originally appeared on Management Today 

If you’ve listened to a few TED Talks, or read your share of self-improvement books, I’m sure you’ve heard the reassuring words that any failure can help us learn and improve; this is a notion called ‘Failosophy’.

However, research from The University of Chicago Booth School of Business has concluded most of us don’t learn from past mistakes. Ayelet Fishbach, professor of behavioural science and marketing, says “People don’t learn from failure because it negatively impacts self-esteem, threatening the ego”.

Failure and poor performance has the potential to become a viscous cycle. An employee who repeatedly fails may start to believe they’re unable to master a task, preventing them from taking the time to learn and get better at it. Managers can help with this and implement certain strategies to cushion the blow of failure and allow the team to learn from each other. 

What’s important is to remove the ego. The best leaders inspire their teams and set a good example to follow. Show your vulnerability and encourage others to be open about their weaknesses too. It’s also the manager’s responsibility to turn failure into a confidence-building lesson and, ultimately, a positive. Be vulnerable, show your own shortcomings and ask your more experienced members of staff to do the same.

As with many things, communication is fundamental and an area to be worked on over time; it helps the group bond and removes any sense of ego or blame. Instead, any mistake should be embraced and seen as part of the journey which everyone is following and helping to work towards.