Looking in the Mirror After You Get It Wrong

Playing to Win

March 17, 2026

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Welcome to the latest newsletter
of Playing to Win!

My newsletter is designed specifically to help business owners like you grow your companies with tried & applied bits of business knowledge, all communicated in actionable, bite-sized chunks. I will share insights and advice aimed at enhancing your business operations, boosting your success, and allowing you to focus more on what truly matters. Let's work together to achieve your goals and make your endeavors a reality.

Key Points of the Newsletter

  • Owning mistakes builds credibility, not weakness.
  • Cold decisions can still be wrong decisions.
  • Growth requires public accountability.

Looking in the Mirror After You Get It Wrong

There is nothing glamorous about admitting you were wrong.

Especially when the decision cost money. Time. Energy. Momentum.

Leadership often requires making hard calls with imperfect information. And sometimes those calls are simply wrong. Not strategically debatable. Not “partially correct.” Just wrong.

What separates average leaders from exceptional ones is not mistake avoidance. It’s ownership.

It is deeply uncomfortable to look your peers in the eye and say, “I made that decision. It didn’t work. Here’s why. Here’s what I learned. Here’s how we move forward.”

But that moment is where trust compounds.

When leaders hide mistakes, teams lose confidence. When leaders rationalize mistakes, teams lose clarity. When leaders own mistakes, teams gain maturity.

Mistakes are tuition. The only wasted loss is the one you refuse to analyze.

Instead of defending a bad decision, dissect it. What assumptions were flawed? What data did you overvalue? What risks did you underestimate? Growth accelerates when reflection is honest and immediate.

There is also an important distinction between being decisive and being defensive. Decisiveness drives progress. Defensiveness protects ego.

If your identity is tied to always being right, you will stunt your growth. If your identity is tied to becoming better, mistakes become stepping stones.

Here’s the uncomfortable but liberating truth: credibility does not come from perfection. It comes from transparency and course correction.

Leadership is not about projecting certainty.

It is about modeling resilience.

The next time you get it wrong, resist the urge to soften it. Own it fully. Extract the lesson. Share it clearly.

That is how individuals grow.

That is how organizations mature.

And that is how you actually become the best.

Stay tuned for more insights in our next newsletter. Remember, it's the small adjustments that often make the biggest impact on your business's profitability. Here's to your continued success!

Stay driven to push your business forward,
Ryan Niddel