Swallow Your Pride?
Written on 6:09 PM by O
The rule applies in all aspects of life and I am pretty sure it has saved many workplace and business relationships. The ability to say, “I was wrong, I’m sorry,” seems to be one many people lack but it is vital in a functional relationship as there is usually some form of disagreement or confusion in the long run. In the past week, I have been planning several events at work and due to the sheer volume of logistics involved; I have made some honest mistakes. What I haven’t done is blame other people or circumstances for my lack of attention to detail. I have found that it pays to apologize and it gives people a respect for you that they probably wouldn’t have if you made excuses or ignored the situation. The benefits of the humility shown in the act of apology are matchless to the zero reasons why people don’t do it.
A situation last week comes to mind: I was at a McDonalds (only because I got some good coupons in the mail and haven’t had any in a while). I added the 2 for $1 Apple Pie to my order but there was only 1 Apple Pie left. The manager told me this and proceeded to very rashly ask me to leave it out completely and choose something else or just take the one. His attitude was rude and I was turned off. A simple apology for running out would have sufficed and I would have been in a better mood leaving. I vowed never to return to that McDonalds based on that experience.
A simple apology goes far in making things better and allowing the involved parties continue on as opposed to the ugly feelings rashness creates. In fact, a survey was conducted in the United Kingdom that found: “More than a third of consumers would stay loyal to a firm if it apologized following a customer service failure.” The study goes on to say, “Reducing customer defections [desertion of allegiance] has been found to boost profits in 25-85% of cases, yet in 73% of cases the organizations made no attempt to persuade dissatisfied customers to stay.” In this case, saying, “I’m sorry,” lends itself to more benefit than the basic smoothing over of things, there is a tangible value attached to it. This should be reason enough to say the two little words but it seems to be a stumbling block for many.
Do you think it is sometimes not ok to apologize for a mistake?
