Knowingly or unknowingly, sometimes due to environmental and situational pressures, ignorance/ lack of knowledge, we

commit mistakes. More often even minor mistakes are blown up out of proportions by many and a bitter environment is created
at ; home and at office even by near and dear ones and a label is generated. This saying To err is Human and to forgive is
Divine is more often quoted than followed in life. Errors, mistakes, defectives are indeed an integral part of any system,
however efficient a system may be defects are bound to happen in any process and transaction. Even the best Quality
Management System allows for a certain mistakes to happen by drawing tolerance limits. Nobody can be free from mistakes
and no system can be free from errors. No worthwhile achievements have ever occurred without errors and mistakes.

There is bound to be variation in any activity or performance, this is a natural phenomena. We can control and minimize but
cannot totally eliminate mistakes and errors & defects. We have to set tolerance limits and monitor closely rather than trying to
correct every variation as a mistake
From our day to day routine operations to launching spacecrafts mistakes do occur. There is no need to become panicky &
impatient about mistakes and creating a situation for covering up or hiding mistakes. The best cook with decades of experience
is still unsure of the taste of sambar that he has just made.
Most of us have zero tolerance for mistakes, Defectives and errors resort to Punishments. The Reward and punishment, the
carrot- stick principles have proved to be unworkable/ ineffective and could even be dangerous in the long run. Making mistakes
provides opportunity for taking corrective actions in the learning process. Most often, Fear is being created even from childhood
through parents, teachers, bosses and peers about mistakes. The risk taking ability & attitude and the creativity are lost when
actions are criticized for mistakes. Nobody sympathizes and encourages a mistake maker and give an opportunity for
correction. He is criticized, de-motivated and his energy dries out
By committing mistakes only, we learn and get the courage to correct and prevent repetition of mistakes/errors. Mistaking is a
part of the learning process. A child trying to learn how to ride a cycle falls and stumbles several times before being confident to
ride it. We fail several times by committing mistakes and by not fully following the instructor/guide .When we say zero error, it
only means that the number of mistakes is insignificant in comparison to total but not zero! Which is the basis of Quality
Management Systems
We do lots and lots of mistakes in School, the teacher must have the patience to correct rather than rebuking and punishing.
The boss at office must have tolerance for ambiguity to sustain the team spirit. There is a need to be sympathetic with mistake
makers and to examine the root causes

Even in Six Sigma Management - Zero defect principle there is still room for mistakes occurring. At least 3 to 4 mistakes in a
million operations! The large number of large numbers (The Bell curve) accommodates mistakes as a natural phenomena,
We must understand this aspect and not harp on every mistake committed which can otherwise lead to fear, non disclosure of
mistakes and making bigger and more frequent mistakes
If a mistake is genuine, then it is forgivable and one learns from this mistake. However if the mistake is deliberate and
intended to hurt another person then it is not forgivable. One does not learn from such mistakes and they are used only as a
mask to hide one's real intentions. One should make a distinction between a mistake and a crime. While a mistake is
forgivable, the crime whether intentional or unintentional, is always punishable though the extent of the punishment may vary.
At a Macro level making promises (political, commercial) and not carrying out/ adhering
quality is measured by percentages & frequencies

are gross mistakes/defects, The

The fear of punishment and also its after effects prevents us taking risks and pushes us for covering mistakes rather than
correcting them. An open system of acknowledging that mistaking is an integral part of system and can have scope for
creativity, quality improvement, and infuses self confidence of the doer tremendously. People hide mistakes/errors and
misrepresent for fear of nagging which can have serious negative effects. There is more to learn from mistakes and failures
than from success. While we celebrate success we must also learn to learn from failures and take a lesson for life. We must
understand that nothing is as great as we perceive and nothing is as bad as we think. There is no need to condemn people
making mistakes without understanding the environment that compelled them to do so. Many are eager to point out others
mistakes and have no words of appreciation for good work. This has been a major issue in interpersonal relationships, more
particularly in inner family circles which results in bitter feeling and tragedies like divorces, suicides ..

Can we learn to live with mistakes and learn from mistakes in a positive way rather than taking a negative approach by being
sarcastic, cynical about mistake makers and de- motivate them for life?