Learning is an interesting thing. However, it seems like we learn the greatest lessons from our mistakes. In fact most of us have embedded in our personalities mistakes that we keep making over and over again. We learned when we were young that it was wrong to make mistakes. We learned that one way not to make a mistake is not to admit we made one.
Good leaders give people permission to make mistakes.
They create a context around the mistakes, a context in which the mistakes must have a purpose consistent with the mission of the organization. The person making the mistake must learn from the mistake and must share what he or she has learned with others. In that context, mistake making is good because it permits us to learn to get better. The fifth principle of self-fulfillment is telling the truth. Unfortunately, however, most of us don't always tell the truth.