A "bucket list" for leadership mistakes

We should makes mistakes, because we learn important lessons from them.  And "those experiences that are the hardest – those "developmental challenges" -- are the ones from which "we can learn the most," writes Dan McCarthy in 10 Mistakes Every Leader Should Make (and learn from) before They Die.  Dan is basically encouraging us (no, he's daring us) to make at least these 10 mistakes because we'll be better leaders as a result of them.  Of course, the alternative is to avoid these mistakes, but where's the fun in that.
If you are accumulating what I call a "bucket list for leadership mistakes" -- to experience or to avoid -- here are three of Dan's top 10:

• No. 7 - Trying to be liked by everyone.  "Leaders can’t be their employee’s friends, and leading change usually means ruffling someone’s feathers. Being a leader . . . requires developing a thick skin and being able to take the heat without taking it personally."

Failing successfully

Failure is “rarely enjoyable when you're in the midst of it or dealing with the aftermath.”  Failure Is Failure.  The thought of failing may seem even more painful for in-house counsel, for whom perfection (or near perfection) is often expected from clients or might be self-imposed.  Yet occasional mistakes and failures are inevitable, even for the most conservative of counsel.  Indeed, clients often want their counsel to take risks that (by definition) may end badly.

With this in mind, take heed of the recent rash of business articles that provide perspective on how to fail the right way:

• Failure is OK, just don’t fail at failure.  The premise is that the benefit of a failure is the “learning” that comes from it.  If valuable lessons are not learned (and you keep repeating what you did previously), then you are “failing at failing.”  See Adam Richardson's Failure Is Failure.
• Failing Forward.  Another view on a successful failure: "when I look back I realize that every failure has moved me forward.  Every failure taught me a lesson and made me stronger, wiser and better.  I failed many times but I failed forward (I first heard this term from John Maxwell)."  See Jon Gordon's Failing Forward.

Mistakes & How to Recover

Amy Gallo reminds us that "mistakes, even big ones, don't have to leave a permanent mark on your career.  In fact, most contribute to organizational and personal learning; they are an essential part of experimentation and a prerequisite for innovation.  So don't worry: if you've made a mistake at work, — and, again, who hasn't? — you can recover gracefully and use the experience to learn and grow."

Amy's "Principles to Remember" include:  Do "Accept responsibility for your role in the mistake" and Don't "Be defensive or blame others."