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Well that was definitely a very nice long weekend that I managed to sneak in there. We had been planning on actually getting away for at least one day of it but problems with one of our computes and Steve's back meant that we actually stayed here in town and did some tourist type things here instead.

Over on the Small Business Branding Blog they're asking the question: can a company ever fully recover from a branding error? It's certainly an interesting question but to bring it even closer to the situation of most webmasters here in adult perhaps the question should be: can we ever fully recover from a major error of judgment?

Mistakes are something we all make from time to time; some are quite small and they're easy to recover from while others are major and can have a dreadful impact on you and the success of your business. This morning I watched Steve stagger out of bed and use the end of the bed as a support while he tried to get his legs moving. It wasn't a pretty sight to see someone who is important to you in so much pain but it was a reminder of how mistakes can affect you for years.

Over 10 years ago now Steve made a mistake in the way he handled something he picked up and now his back is in a terrible state. While it doesn't have much impact on what he does now it certainly affects his quality of life and it won't ever improve.

Fortunately not all the mistakes we make will have that effect on us. The effects of some mistakes will just pass with time but to minimize the effect of others we may need to take some positive steps to counteract the damage that we've done. In those situations early recognition is vital and it's important to recognize that we have actually made a mistake. Sometimes that is not as easy as it sounds.

Unfortunately with some mistakes the full impact that the mistake is going to have on our business does not become obvious for months ... and sometimes even years. Things may even look very rosy for quite some time so by the time the mistake is obvious correcting it will be very difficult.

Sometimes, when we make mistakes that involve unpleasant engagements with other people that we do business with it may seem as though we're in the right. We're the aggrieved party and so if we choose to take the high moral ground we must be taking a positive step ... or so it might seem.

But making a judgment like that when it's based on emotion rather than common sense all we are doing is damaging our business more than theirs. In situations like that it can be far better for your business to bury the hatchet and continue to work together because, if you don't, it might be your business that goes to the wall and not the one that you thought was in the wrong.

At the same that it's important to recognize your mistake as soon as possible it can also be a mistake to rush in and try and correct it. Knee-jerk reactions often only bring more pain ... just ask Steve when his back is really bad. Sure it might seem to be a good idea to rush in and immediately try to fix the mistake that you've identified but haste all too often makes waste.

Sure, identify the mistake just as soon as you can. Face it squarely, accept that it was a mistake that you've made and that it is something that needs to be fixed but then stop and take a deep breath. Instead of rushing in with some hastily thought up solution that could do even more damage to your business take a break, grab a cup of coffee and look at all the alternative solutions.

You've made a mistake and it is going to impact on your business so spend a little time choosing the right solution. You want to fix the problem not make it worse by making yet another mistake.

And that's how it works even here in adult. You will make mistakes, probably some very big ones that years down the track you will look back on with some sense of embarrassment and even perhaps some shame; everyone makes mistakes like that sooner or later but once those mistakes have been made accept them, correct them, learn from them and then move on.

It's those who don't learn from their mistakes ... or fail to recognize that they have even made some mistakes ... who will fail in this or any other small business.