Steps To Restoring Credibility

There are three steps to restoring damaged credibility as advocated by John Maxwell:

1) Acknowledge the mistake

Never run from acknowledging that a mistake has been made, although it may not be your fault. A credible leader moves quickly to acknowledge a mistake and to take responsibility for it as well as provides stakeholders an explanation and a solution. A poor leader assigns the blame to others or makes a plethora of excuses which results in nothing being resolved and further damage being done. Any acknowledgement of wrong-doing should be voluntary - a forced acknowledgement (because someone is caught red-handed) does nothing to re-establish trust.

2) Apologize

A leader that stands up to apologize in the face of adversity or a wrongdoing by someone else within the company establishes his or her credibility. While you may lose "face" for the moment, your sincerity garners you the respect of others and helps enhance your reputation among like-minded peers and companies. Moreover, it makes you a stronger person.

3) Make Amends

A credible leader needs to ensure that the company makes restitution to the people that have suffered as a consequence of the company's complicity in the issue. While it may not be required to do so by law, a company comes out all the more credible and reaps enormous goodwill when it goes the extra mile to remedy strained relationships or fix a problem not of its own making.

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Sometimes You Win--Sometimes You Learn: Life's Greatest Lessons Are Gained from Our Losses