Looking to others for advice and guidance can save you from making some serious snafus. Leading is tough stuff, especially if you’ve been thrust into the role with little preparation.

We came across this video, “The Biggest Mistake a Leader Can Make,” from the Harvard Business Review with some excellent points from various professors. They point out leader mistakes like betraying trust; putting self-interest over the interests of the organization; not being authentic and consistent; being arrogant; and not living up to values.

Harvard Business Review has an entire blog series on “Imagining the Future of Leadership.” You might want to bookmark that site for inspiration and ideas. A good leader is one who is willing to learn, eager to make self-improvements and not above admitting his or her shortcomings and desiring to rise above those.

What is the biggest mistake a leader can make? As a leader, have you made mistakes? Have you worked for leaders who made mistakes and how did it impact you as an employee?

It happens to the best of us. Making mistakes is part of life and mistakes are certainly part of business. Of course, it’s usually best if mistakes are rare occurrences, but when they occur, how you handle them can make all the difference.

If your employees know you will blow a gasket over even the smallest error, they definitely aren’t going to rush to tell you about a problem. In fact, they may go to great lengths to hide a mistake, potentially causing more problems.

A manager who accepts mistakes and tries to help employees learn from them is certain to have more success. This approach works well with young children – letting them learn from their mistakes is a sure fire way to get a message across (something like, “I told you not to touch the hot stove.”)

There are even instances where a mistake turns into a great invention, discovery or marketing campaign.  Part of making mistakes is trying.  Give your employees a little freedom and see what happens. If the result is a big mistake, at least you tried and hopefully everyone learned a valuable lesson.

How do you handle mistakes in your company? Do employees have the freedom to make a mistake while trying something innovative?