We’ve all been there before. At some point in our careers, we’ve made mistakes, perhaps due to an error in judgment or a misstep at work. It’s not a great feeling, especially when the consequences bring stress or frustration. But the silver lining is that making mistakes is part of the learning process. As long as we learn from them, we grow—and that growth is invaluable.
The real challenge, however, is figuring out how to accelerate that growth without constantly making mistakes. After all, while one mistake can be a valuable learning experience, making heaps of mistakes is not ideal for personal or professional progress. So, how can we continue to grow without tripping up too often? There are two powerful strategies to consider: seeking real-time feedback and working with a mentor or coach.
1. Real-Time Feedback: A Fast Track to Growth
One of the best ways to accelerate your growth is by seeking out feedback from someone you trust—preferably someone who is exposed to your work and can offer you real-time insights. This person could be a colleague, a manager, or even a peer who is familiar with the context of your work. The key is that they can provide honest, constructive feedback that you can act on immediately.
Why is real-time feedback so effective? Because it helps you address mistakes or blind spots before they have a chance to become ingrained habits. When you receive feedback in the moment, you can course-correct quickly, learning how to adapt and improve without the need to make a significant error first. This not only boosts your performance but also enhances your self-awareness.
However, for real-time feedback to work, you need to create a relationship based on trust. The person giving you feedback must feel comfortable being honest with you, even when the truth is hard to hear. For this to happen, you need to be open to criticism and show that you genuinely value their input. By cultivating a mindset that sees feedback as a gift rather than an attack, you’ll create a healthy loop of continuous learning and improvement.
2. Working with a Mentor or Coach: Long-Term Growth
While real-time feedback is great for addressing immediate issues, working with a mentor or coach is about long-term growth and achieving your career goals with purpose and intention. A mentor or coach can help you gain clarity on what you truly want to achieve in your career and guide you in developing a plan to get there.
A mentor is someone who has more experience in your field or profession and can provide valuable advice based on their own journey. They can help you avoid common pitfalls and offer wisdom on how to navigate your career. A good mentor will challenge your thinking, push you to aim higher, and provide insights that you might not have considered on your own. The relationship is often informal but deeply impactful, as it provides an opportunity to learn from someone who has walked the path before you.
A coach, on the other hand, takes a more structured and goal-oriented approach. Coaches are trained to help you identify your strengths, weaknesses, and areas for improvement. They help you set clear goals and then work with you to develop the skills, habits, and mindset needed to achieve them. The coaching process is often about self-discovery, as coaches use questioning techniques to help you find the answers within yourself. This makes coaching a powerful tool for growth because it encourages deep reflection and self-awareness.
One of the greatest benefits of working with a mentor or coach is that it allows you to be more deliberate in your career development. Rather than growing haphazardly—making mistakes, learning from them, and hoping for the best—you can actively plan your growth. With their guidance, you can focus on the areas that will have the most significant impact on your long-term success, whether that’s leadership, technical skills, or personal development.
Why Both Approaches Matter
Both real-time feedback and working with a mentor or coach are essential tools for accelerating your growth, and they complement each other beautifully. Real-time feedback addresses the here and now, helping you avoid immediate missteps and improve your performance on the spot. It’s like having a mirror that reflects your actions so you can adjust them quickly.
Mentoring and coaching, on the other hand, take a broader view. They help you step back and assess where you’re headed and what you need to work on to get there. This long-term focus ensures that you’re not just improving day-to-day but also progressing toward your bigger career goals.
The beauty of these two approaches is that they help you grow smarter, not harder. By leveraging feedback and mentorship, you can minimise the number of mistakes you make while still benefiting from the growth that comes with them. You’re essentially getting the best of both worlds—learning from your experiences without letting setbacks define your career.
Conclusion
Mistakes are an inevitable part of growth, but they don’t have to be the primary way you learn. By seeking real-time feedback from those around you and working with a mentor or coach, you can accelerate your growth in a more intentional, less painful way. These strategies help you learn and improve faster, without the need for constant missteps along the way.
So, the next time you find yourself wanting to grow without making heaps of mistakes, remember: feedback and mentorship are your best allies. With them, you can achieve meaningful growth and reach your goals more efficiently.
Contact evince Consulting today to see how our coaching and mentoring services can help you achieve your goals.
