Apologies are Accepted

This Week with Sara Fitts looks at how we apologize when we are in positions of leadership.

While we always intend to communicate the right thing at the right time, sometimes we stumble and say things or write things that come out wrong or are misunderstood. Sometimes we simply just use bad judgment and unintentionally offend someone - or lots of people. At these times, it is extremely important to acknowledge the error, apologize for its inappropriateness, and move forward to better the relationship.

It doesn't matter if the error is made by the CEO, the owner or president of the company, or an employee - what matters is that it is addressed. When offensive statements are made, many things can happen. For example, conflict can erupt and shut down production or hurt feelings on the part of staff or customers can ruin business deals.

Regardless of what the error is, the best way to handle it is to acknowledge that someone has been offended, angered, or hurt. To ignore this is arrogant and will have long-standing negative effects. To apologize for any and all errors will go a very long way to build better business relationships. Apologies are accepted. Often that is all that is needed to move forward in business and in life.