How important is it to admit a mistake? What about if no one would ever know, would you still admit you have messed up?
A friend of mine recently told me the story of a young man who works in the race car industry. The boy had been promoted to a very important position on the pit crew of a race team and had the responsibility to make sure the right tires went on the car in the right location. It seems simple enough, but it is critical because of the high speeds that the drivers travel in the cars.
Well he did not have a lot of training in this, and during the very first race he inadvertently put the tires on the wrong side of the car. Doesn’t sound like a big deal, but it could have been tragic.
After the race, which the driver lost, the boy mentioned to his other crew members that he had made a mistake. Their encouragement was that no one would know, kind of like “no harm – no foul.”
He couldn’t keep that inside though. He went to the driver and admitted his mistake and apologized for costing the driver the race. His teammates thought he would be chewed out for sure, maybe even lose his job. The driver though, thanked him for his honesty. The driver knew he had learned through his mistake and that he would never make that mistake again. When your life rests in the hands of others, you want to know that they take their responsibility seriously.
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