Oops, I Made A Mistake...

As the remodeling project continues at the Schmidt house, we had a concrete driveway put in last week. Sadly, the crew finished in the morning, and in the afternoon, it started raining. If you've ever had concrete work done, you know that rain can kill at least the top layer. And it did. It didn't affect the strength or structural integrity, but it made the top layer look less than perfect. The contractor felt horrible and immediately offered to redo the whole project. And it wasn't cheap. Kudos to him for owning the problem, even though it wasn't really his fault. He said, "I strive for perfection, and I didn't deliver it this time, so I'm going to do it again at my expense."

In sales – heck – in life, mistakes happen – you lose a major account, miss a critical call with a prospect, send the wrong pricing proposal or you misunderstand a buyer's needs. According to Korn Ferry, nearly half of senior executives report a major career "blow-up" at some point—but that shouldn't mean the end of your sales credibility. Instead, how you handle that mistake can be a decisive moment to rebuild trust, reinforce your value and even deepen your client relationships.

The article offers five recovery steps for leaders, so I've reworked them to fit our role as sales professionals.

Be sincere in your apology - Whether you caused a pricing error or missed the timeline, don't bury it. Reach out openly and in person (if possible) to the impacted client or internal stakeholder. Take full ownership—avoid blaming external factors or team members. As the article states, half-hearted apologies that shift blame backfire. In sales, authenticity builds credibility: say, "I made an error in our proposal, and I regret the impact this has had on you and your timeline. Here's how I'm making it right."

Evaluate the full extent of the impact - Mistakes in sales rarely affect just you—they ripple across the team, the buyer, perhaps other departments. Korn Ferry advises you to talk with colleagues and affected parties to gain a complete picture, then own your part. In a sales scenario, this might mean gathering internal facts: how many decision-makers were affected? Did the error affect the renewal cadence, trust or internal customer perception? Then share your findings with the customer: "Here's what I have learned about the impact on your project—and here's what I propose next."

Don't dwell on the mistake - It's easy to ruminate on a lost deal or misstep—yet that can cloud your next moves. According to the article, wallowing distracts your performance and makes further missteps more likely. In sales, once you've sincerely apologized and mapped the impact, shift to action: present a clear corrective plan and then refocus your time on new opportunities and rebuilding your pipeline.

Regain trust with your leader (and your client) - In corporate terms, rebuilding trust with your boss is critical—but for sales, the direct parallel is rebuilding trust with the buyer and internal stakeholders. The article notes that honesty and owning your mistake give your boss (and by extension your team) a chance for a growth moment. So with your buyer, say: "Here is what I'm doing to correct this, and here are the metrics I'll track to show you progress." Then follow through, update regularly and demonstrate you're back on track. Accept consequences, then plan what's next - In sales, a mistake might mean you lose a bonus, risk your account relationship or face internal censure. The article's advice: accept it, document your learning and plan your comeback. For you, this means logging what happened, creating a "lessons learned" note and communicating future safeguards. Then propose new value-add steps for the client to show you're committed to upside, not just damage control.

Bonus Tip: One question that is a favorite of mine when making a mistake is to ask your client: "What can I do to make this right?" All too often, we jump to bonus commercials and free stuff and go way overboard because of our own guilt. So, when you screw something up, ask that question. Then listen to the answer and, if possible, provide what they want and just a little bit more. In my experience, the client's "want" will always be less than what I was willing to offer.

With my concrete guy, if he had asked that question, we would have been happy with him giving us a few thousand back and calling it even. I mean, it's concrete, it doesn't have to be perfect. But instead, he's going to completely tear it out and do it again. We're certainly grateful for that, but it really wasn't necessary.

Every mistake can become a defining moment — and, ironically, a positive thing. If you respond with sincerity, clarity about the impact, forward momentum and transparent follow-through, you shift the narrative from "Oh no" to "You see how well this rep acts under pressure." In effect, how you recover becomes part of your sales brand. Use the mistake as a demonstration of reliability, growth and customer-centric integrity—instead of letting it define you.

Think Big, Make Big Things Happen!

Jeff Schmidt is the SVP of Professional Development. You can reach him at Jeff.Schmidt@rab.com. You can all so connect with him on X and LinkedIn