We all make mistakes, but failures are different

I used to feel ashamed for making mistakes.

As a kid in the spelling bee I misspelled lollipop in the second grade and felt stupid. Like I had failed. But actually that was just a mistake.

As a lawyer and law firm owner, you're going to make mistakes.

You’ll forget your clients name, calling him Charles instead of Chris.

Maybe you’ll write an email to your client, outlining your strategy for an upcoming court hearing, but the recipient on the email is opposing counsel.

Whoops.

We’ve all been there. The best lawyers make mistakes. The most highly paid lawyers make mistakes.

It’s the little things that the partners would tear you a new one for.

That’s a mistake. It’s not a failure.

What’s a failure then, Nermin?

A failure is serious. It’s not tiny. It’s something that happens repeatedly. It’s a systematic problem. Something that needs to be pulled out at the root and not something that can be fixed cosmetically.

It’s like your house is falling apart but you’re repainting your porch to sell it.

Listen in to this week's episode to find out if you’re making tiny mistakes or colossal failures in your law firm: