There comes a time in everyone’s life that we make a giant mess of a situation at work. Sometimes, even if it’s something small, in order to get it off of our conscience, we have to apologize to our boss. As Gen Y’s in the workforce begin to move into positions of greater importance, mistakes are bound to happen. That’s the way humans learn; trial and error. So, keep your chin up, everything will be fine. Here are my suggestions on how to apologize to your boss, from my Millennial perspective, regardless of your boss’ generation:
- Be HONEST with yourself. Know the reason why you lied or did something against your boss’ instruction. DO NOT go in to speak with your boss before knowing what you’re preparing to apologize for and why you are doing it. If you’re truly, truly sorry, this is the easiest step.
- Don’t BLAME anyone else. Own up to your actions AND the repercussions your actions caused. This does not mean beat yourself up over it, it simply means taking ownership of the outcome your actions resulted in. We all make mistakes.
- Be HONEST with your boss. Go into detail about what happened, why you felt your actions were appropriate at the time and, make sure you actually express that you are sorry. Sometimes in the discussion, people forget to actually apologize. A simple “I’m sorry and promise it won’t happen in the future” can go a long, long way.
- Don’t BLAME anyone else. Acknowledge the damage you caused openly. Don’t try and play anything down because you’re scared. If your boss finds out later that you left vital information out, your apology will appear contrite and automatically becomes useless.
- Ask for NEXT STEPS. If you’ve really messed up, these may be your last words you utter before entering into the droves of those who are also unemployed. This will give your boss the opportunity to open up dialogue with you on how to avoid this from happening in the future and what, if any, professional repercussions you can expect.
There are a few caveats to making an apology in the business setting:
1) If there are any legal implications to your actions or the actions of your employer, it is important that you do not apologize without first consulting an attorney and/or having one present. An apology over a minor blip regarding a customer service issue is in no way the same as delivering an apology for sexually harassing someone in the workplace. Conversely, if you’ve been sexually harassed, do not accept an apology without first consulting an attorney and/or having one present.
2) Timing is critical. Don’t spring your apology on your boss 10 minutes before a meeting. Schedule a sit-down meeting if you have to.
As with many things in life, open honesty reigns when it comes to apologizing to your boss, so I cannot stress enough how crucial it is to maintain your integrity though honesty. Your boss will appreciate it and you’ll feel better knowing you don’t have some little detail that might discredit your apology looming down the road. Good luck!
Good stuff Desiree. I’d add that you should write it all down and bring it with you, just to make sure don’t fly off on some emotion-driven tangent.
While you’re writing things down, you should make a small list of things you can do better and a list of things your boss can do to help you achieve those goals. Have an open dialog and you could walk out happier with your job than when you walked in. The strategies I’ve listed coupled with the ones you’ve mentioned above worked for me when I goofed up (said something on a blog…another Gen Y mistake).
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