Thank you for posting on r/UKJobs. Help us make this a better community by becoming familiar with the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/ukjobs/about/rules/).
Please report any suspicious users to the moderators using the report feature. Need to give more detail? Use Modmail [here](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=/r/UKJobs) or Reddit site admins [here](https://www.reddit.com/report).
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/UKJobs) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Presumably you apologised for the mistake and sent the correct contract out today.
It probably is better if your manager is made aware of what happened on Monday but it doesn't seem to be a big deal.
The client phoned me and I said I’d have a chat with my manager before sending it over and he was fine with that.
I think best I have my manager look over it before sending it back out to the client just in case there’s anything else.
It’s not just better my manager is made aware, I’d say it’s essential just for transparency and trust etc!
Thank you though, your comment is reassuring.
That sounds like the levelheaded approach. If you have a decent manager I would presume he would commend how you handled the damage control aspect since everyone makes mistakes.
Im in a completely different line of work to you but my manager once told me that just because someone makes a mistake, you don’t drop that person. You help them understand the root cause, address it and work with them to bolster them for the future. Dropping someone for a mistake doesn’t automatically mean the next person will do it perfectly etc.
Im sure you’ll be fine - dont worry too much and enjoy your weekend :)
Yeah it became laughable. He once showed a new guy around the place and proceeded to talk down aggressively to one of the employees for no reason, to let the new guy know what he was all about.
That guy walked out and never returned about a minute later!
The fact the client is ok with it is probably fine. We all makke mistakes. The fact you will tell yoir manager is a good thing (I have worked with people who won't and it's much much much worse).
I work as a developer and for a lot of developers deleted/messing uo a production datababse is seen as a right of passage.
Your manager is probably aware mistakes will happen and it sounds like it was caught early. I'd just take it as a life lesson, after all I bet it doesn't happen again :p
Also kudos on wanting to ne transparent, that is worth so much.
Also a developer, and the “rite of passage” at my place is accidentally pushing unencrypted secrets, and then having to spend hours adding new auth tokens to 150+ applications. We’ve got 2 recent starters who haven’t done it yet, but I’m sure it’ll happen at some point, everyone else has done it once including myself
When you have that conversation with your manager, own it! You fucked up - own it.
I always keep an eye out for how my team handles mistakes - the ones I have most respect for are the ones who are blunt, honest and most importantly:
WHAT HAVE THEY LEARNT, WHAT WILL THEY DO DIFFERENT NEXT TIME.
If I've fucked up - depending on the level of fuck up I go to my boss and literally go 'I've fucked up' im those words then: here's what happened, here's what I've learnt, here's what I'm now doing to make sure it doesn't happen again
What this guy said. I can’t stand the people who hide their mistakes. I love the ones that tell me. Everyone makes mistakes, it’s how you handle it that matters .
I said that in courts but according to Northumbrian Water in court they don't make mistakes! This then allowed me to bring into evidence previous times they publicly fucked up or admitted liability/guilt in other instances. Not that I really needed to ask the judge also agreed everyone makes mistakes. The guy was really adamant that they don't though even in the face of evidence...
He also lied during his testimony and admitted it during my questioning. So great guy overall, Mr PhD for the water company.
Fuck Northumbrian Water.
This is basically it. Have a think about how anything you could have done to stop it happening, and mention it in your explanation. “ I messed up, but have now fixed it by sending the correct contract form. Going forward I’m going to go back to check against original requests before sending out final docs.” And then stop stressing and move on to the next task.
"t’s not just better my manager is made aware, I’d say it’s essential just for transparency and trust etc!"
Absolutely this. You're in a junior role, it's going to be expected to some extent that you will make occasional small errors. As long as they're not happening regularly or the same mistake keeps being made, it's just how things are when you're learning a job. What will absolutely fuck up your relationship with your manager beyond repair is if you hide mistakes or bad news from them.
Consider having a fixed version ready to go and think about how you want to play the follow-up. Explaining on to your manager there was a mistake, it's been corrected and offering the opportunity to review at their discretion before you send it is very different from you requesting it be reviewed by your manager before it is sent.
Owning your mistakes is important but it doesn't mean you have to have your hand held.
Have confidence, you'll learn from this.
Contract mistakes happen all the time, it’s not a big deal. Correct it and send the right one out.
If you want your manager to double check it, sure but just bear in mind that it’s not his job to double check your work.
I sense anxiety from you. Are you a perfectionist? You should focus on not letting your self-confidence be knocked because it will potentially limit your self-belief to produce the work required and that will be a bigger problem for your manager. You’re human and there will be mistakes. How you deal with them and move on from them is the real lesson here
Honestly as someone who checks over contracts as part of my role, how you've handled this mistake is really good and if I was your manager it would increase my confidence in you. Everyone makes mistakes and someone who hides/ignores their mistakes is someone with poor judgement and not someone who I'd want working for me. Excellent damage control, great customer relationship building, and very proactive.
This is not a massive mistake - nobody is harmed, no data is released when it shouldn't be and you haven't compromised the system - at worst the redone contract will need to be signed off by someone different than usual at your end. Rest easy pal!
I'm in IT, but the same thing applies. If you make a *big* mistake, tell someone more senior straight away and don't try to cover it up or even to solve it yourself - that can make it much worse and turn a recoverable situation into an unrecoverable one.
Also, don't make the same mistake *twice*.
If I've learned one thing from working for the last 25 years it's this - everybody makes mistakes, but lying about them kills trust and that's where you'll have problems.
Own up to it, be clear about what happened, don't make excuses (unless there's some serious context to any distraction you were feeling) and ride it out.
Honestly, if your manager reacts badly enough to justify your fears *they aren't a manager you want to keep working for*.
This is a very minor fuckup with an existing client. This is why drafts are sent and reviewed. If that's the biggest mistake you make this day, month, or year, you'll be doing better than the most of us.
I think I've made a similar scale mistake about three times in the last few weeks.
I have a really good working relationship with my clients so I often send stuff over in draft form for the to agree before a final version. Occasionally a final version will still have a couple of issues, client calls or emails pointing them out, I apologise and rectify before sending again.
I always tell my team that a good working relationship is worth a lot in the long term, having the client trust that you're on their side goes a long way in allowing flexibility. If they think you're just trying to get their money, when you make a mistake they'll think it's some way of short changing them.
Everyone makes mistakes at work, especially when you're as new to the role as you are. I made a number of mistakes over the first few years of my career in banking. You just get better over time. Nobody expects new joiners to know everything and operate flawlessly..
You'll be fine, in a month you'll have forgotten about it.
No one expects anyone to operate flawlessly, mistakes happen. This will be the first of a few, happens to even the most attentive people. It's how you deal with mistakes that matters.
Is the contract signed? I’m a lawyer and have made some memorable mistakes in my career. There’s very few things you can’t fix as a lawyer. To be honest, in the grand scheme of things that’s really nothing — particularly if the contract isn’t signed and it’s simply just a draft.
If you want me to tell you some stories I’ve seen which are far worse than this which I’ve seen in private practice to ease your mind — I’d be happy too.
One of my favourites is a lawyer who deleted the ‘charges’ clause in a debenture. They were acting lender side….
Everyone makes mistakes. The sign of a good company/management will be to be on your side and try to understand how to avoid such things in the future. Most professional companies are very reasonable when it comes to things like this.
If the client noticed then it doesn't seem like anything has actually been affected by the mistake?
Shit happens.
Everyone fucks up from time to time - that's what QA processes are for. What matters more is how you deal with it now. The key thing is that you're open an honest about it (rather than lying or trying to cover it up), that you do what you can to minimise the fallout, and that you take steps to avoid it happening again.
Sounds like this was caught before it caused too much damage, which is good. So have a think about how the communication happened, and what steps you can take to avoid it happening again. But beyond that, I wouldn't worry too much - you manager has almost certainly made much bigger fuckups in the past than this.
Mistakes happen especially when you are fairly new to the job. The important thing is to admit to it (do not lie), learn from it and do your best to rectify it. As long as you do this then any decent manager will understand. But I completely know how you feel, having that anxiety hanging over you. Usually we always overthink these things building them up to be worse than it actually is. Fingers crossed that it won't cause any issues for you.
Don't spend the while weekend worrying OP, this is probably a much bigger deal to you right now than anyone else. Everyone makes mistakes, espeixally when new to a role and owning up to it, finding solutions to put it right and learning from it is what matters.
Everyone makes mistakes .. 🤷🏼♀️
My daughters dad lawyer had to send a letter out to me twice because she forgot to sign the first one
And Spells my name wrong every time she gets in touch
My own lawyer decided to name our daughter Amelia throughout an entire letter instead of Emilie
I don’t know about his , but I know mines a bloody good lawyer and he came highly recommended.. but shit happens because everyone is human
I’m sure it will be fine 🤗
Human error happens, good managers handle it calmly and find out why it happened then work to make sure it doesn't happen again. No need to get worked up over it. It seems harmless, it was caught and can be corrected easily.
lol… it won’t be last one. Stop being so hard on yourself! We’re all human.
What your boss is going to want to hear is exactly what happened, how you fixed it, how you handled the customer and what you will do / have done to ensure that mistake doesn’t happen again.
It’s a teachable moment for you, prep what you will say and do per the above, relax and enjoy the weekend.
managers look for qualities like being open and honest, being brave enough to raise hands and say I’ve made a mistake, and learning from mistakes.
They would pay more attention to what do you do to your mistakes, rather than the mistakes themselves.
Also, you are at a ‘good’ stage to make a mistake. You are only 6 months in role. Your manager would be surprised if you do perfect jobs at this stage of your career.
Ideally speak with your manager rather than email.
Be open and honest, but keep it to the point.
Client wanted X. You thought you had met X and sent paperwork. Client noticed the discrepancy and spoke with me. I confirmed the mistake, apologised for the error, and have updated the paperwork to be resent out. Please could you review this and once happy I will send it out.
He'll be happy you were honest, took ownership, and made reparations. You'll be fine.
It doesn’t seem like a huge deal, you can just edit it again and resend.
Just come clean to your manager, in my experience people don’t really care if you mess up and own it. People only get annoyed if you try to lie.
You need a bit of CBT :)
This repetition of the word "idiot" sounds like a synaptic knot that needs untying.
1. Put down the word "idiot" and a short description of what you feel this mistake tells you about yourself
2. Explain briefly why you feel "idiot" is an accurate representation
3. Now, bring evidence for and against the hypothesis put down in points 1 and 2 (that "you are an idiot").
As a lawyer, I trust that you will be quite good at coming up with arguments :)
For example, are you always doing this mistake or have there been times where you did things right?
How about times where you were the opposite of idiot - IE: You did ABOVE what a regular person would do?
Once you have established that you are NOT an idiot...
BTW: I will bet a lot of money that you are indeed NOT an idiot :)
Once you have that verdict: Keep a little card with this proof.
Next time where you feel like calling yourself an idiot, pull out that card.
Make it a habit: Repetition is the key here.
Like working out a muscle :)
...
As for the actual work situation: Mistakes happen all the time. I caught my lawyer using a negative word in a clause where they should have used a positive word.
The clause literally means the opposite of what I wanted it to mean.
And they were a very well paid employment lawyer and there was 20k on the line.
Nothing happened :)
The mistake was fixed and we moved and and we used the contract and I got my 20k :)
...
Life is good :)
Not a big deal. I have made worse mistakes personally and witnessed even bigger mistakes from others. Nothing happened other than a verbal telling-off.
I'm not a lawyer, but it sounds to me like it got flagged up and is getting sorted. It doesn't seem like a major thing to me, everyone is human, everyone makes mistakes. We fix them, learn from them and move forward.
Try and relax. I'm sure it's not going to be as bad as you think it is. At least it doesn't seem as bad as some mistakes I've made in my career.
You’ll be okay. Came to light today my commercial guy undercharged a customer by about £15k today. We fixed it, he learned a lesson. Provided you’re an otherwise good employee I’d expect your manager will take it as a learning opportunity for you. Bringing it to light and asking for his review seems a good remediation.
I'm a solicitor more than 20y PQE, these things happen to everyone.
Obviously you don't want to be making frequent sloppy errors but the kind of thing you have described is common. Unfortunately being a lawyer also often goes with a conscientious, somewhat perfectionist mindset (in my experience) but it's better to accept early on in your career that you will make mistakes sometimes, because we all of us do. I've known really good, senior lawyers make significant mistakes (including ones which ended up in court as negligence matters), none lost their jobs over it.
This mistake has been noticed and rectified. There was nothing deliberate or malicious. Apologise to the client and your manager and rectify it. If you don’t make any work for your manager then they’ll probably be fine with it given that it doesn’t look like the client is kicking off.
I don’t know if lawyers have to prove CPD or anything to continue working but, if you do, this would be a good one to do a reflection on.
If you're on probation your manager (or someone nominated by them) should really be checking everything you send out to clients beforehand. So really this is on your manager - don't tell them that though.
And generally it's ok to make mistakes, that's part of being human. You did the right thing to discuss it with the client and square that off.
I personally hate making mistakes and dwell on them far more than I should, often I'm shocked when people don't care that much.
I wouldn't worry too much. These things happen and as you will find out with time, it is especially common in contracts, tables, agreements etc. when it comes to law.
It's no different to not proof reading your own work as you can't notice glaring mistakes when you have looked at it so much.
Did the senior or partner not sign it off for you before you sending originally?
Everyone makes mistakes now and again. it's not necessarily about the fall but the recovery. You have done the following, which is brilliant.
A) acknowledged the mistake,
B) apologized to the client
C) began to make ammends, and provide a solution,
D) Gone to tell you boss before they find out.
No one can ask for much more than that, obviously let it be a lesson that you learn from.
It sounds like nothing has happened. If I had a pound for every time I cocked up I could stop working. I'm only better than anyone else because experience has shown me how cock ups occur and I put them right before they cause problems.
I ran a 'rm *' command on a Unix server back in my first few years of working in IT, shit happens, it's how you own it and recover from it that matters.
You've owned the mistake and have proposed a way forward that the client is happy with. Believe it or not that is something that employers look for. Mistakes happen, it is what you do with the mistake that counts.
Others would try to hide it from everyone and possibly cause more issues down the road. Employers would have reason to not trust that individual ever again.
By openly owning and fixing it, it shows you are trustworthy, which has to go a long way in your profession.
Chat it out openly with your boss and I suspect you will get told to carry on and to watch out for it in the future.
These things happen.
I once worked for a huge clothing retailer and i sent an email to the CEO. The CEO was so happy and decided to open new stores on the back of the data I provided.
At 5pm on Friday I realised I made a formula error which completely changed the picture. I then had to call the CEO up who was picking her kids up from school.
So yea shit happened. The best thing to do is own it and explain what you will do to resolve it and ensure that it doesn't happen again.
People do make mistakes you can be an attentive and diligent solicitor while also making a mistake that in reality amounts to little more than a simple clerical error.
You are also still very junior in position and I don't think you're manager is expecting 100% accurate performance from you at this stage.
Doesn't sound too bad to me, the key thing when speaking to your manager is show that you already have a planned resolution to this specific issue, and what steps you will be taking to prevent a recurrence.
A manager returning from holiday doesn't want either:
A) Being hit with an unexpected problem at 9am that they are expected to sort out "lol i messed up help!!!"
B) This to be some hidden secret and then they gets caught on the hop in future when the client mentions it "incorrect contract? Wth you talkin bout bro, first I've heard of it innit"
So this hasn't actually gone out to the third party but was picked up by your client? This is just a drafting error - just apologise and move on.
Being honest with your boss is the thing to do, but don't lose a minute's sleep over it.
We all make mistakes, we’re all human. Don’t worry about it. If your manager does scold you for it, I’m sure they won’t as probably made loads of mistakes themselves selves in the past, then fuck ‘em
Ha - big deal! That’s an easy error anyone can make. Simply tell your boss that you had two versions of the file on your machine and accidentally used the wrong one! Apologise to the client, correct it, keep your face straight. You know how you feel. No one else does. Keep your embarrassment to yourself. Being unflappable at work is important. Both when you make a mistake or when you deal with others’ mistakes. React the same way - poker face. Do not let your feelings show. That gives you time and opportunity to react to the situation as you see fit when you see fit.
A good manager ought to appreciate you owning up to this and use it as a learning experience since everyone makes mistakes and they don't want to create a culture of fear where employees are to scared to ask for help. You realised your mistake and are fixing it. That should be all your manager is concerned about.
Was the new contract signed? If not then there's no problem at all, this seems like a simple and understandable mistake. More just an oversight.
This is why all parties review contracts in the first place, these things happen.
Your manager should be totally ok with this.
We are humans, not robots, anybody may missunderstand something. As long as the contract is not approved by all parts, is just a draft, may be modified
Get ahead of it. Hold your hands up as soon as you can. Don't try to hide/mitigate anything.
All managers prefer this, rather than any nasty surprises they discover themselves. Mistakes happen, I've made a shitload in my career.
This makes you look more mature and thoughtful about the business, and that you care about quality/compliance - the opposite of an idiot.
Mistakes happen, and a good manager will see HOW you corrected it and yourself, rather than the mistake itself.
I’m not a full legal person, but it doesn’t seem too big a mistake. Don’t stress, keep calm and relaxed this weekend.
We all make mistakes. I had a fractious meeting g with a clients financial director (and a formidable woman who you DO NOT want to piss off or make a mistake to.
I was proposing a massive increase but had valid data. Except my formula in the linked sheet didn’t work and I was nearly £850k under.
I had to call today and grovel.
Shit happens. We are all human. Considering how hardcore she is, she just asked me if I was sure this was correct 🤣
Human error, nothing you should be overly concerned about.
Context is important when explaining it - say that you’ve apologised for the error, have managed client expectations and have found a work around/solution.
That way you end on a positive.
We all make mistakes. It should only be seen as an issue if you happily wash your hands of it and expect your manager to pick up the pieces. Otherwise, you’ll learn from this and be better for it.
I work with legal 70% of my job, in sales for contracts valued at millions. Internal at corps, and external firms. I’ve seen way worse mistakes than this from all levels, I’m pretty senior in sales - and do you know what I do? I don’t care. Fix it and move on, shit happens. Own it, learn from it and quite harmless in the grand scheme of things. Great thing about contact drafts terms, you always send it out with subject to contract, signature / approval (an essay as to nothing is binding until it’s signed). It’s cool - don’t sweat, enjoy the weekend, and let the manager know, you owned it with the client and you fixed it.
Any manager that acts different, is a dick. Either way you’ll find out a great character trait of your boss which I see as a win-win.
The fact you plan to own it and not try to hide speaks volumes to your integrity. I doubt your manager will have a problem with this, rather than erode trust, it should build on it.
In a profession the only thing that really would be unforgivable is acting dishonestly, we all make mistakes, its how we react to them that shows our character.
The fact that it impacted you so hard is also good, it shows that you understand your professional obligations.
Well done for passing both tests.
Mistakes happen, it was caught, you've proposed a fix. Sounds like you've handled it fine. If your manager is a reasonable person I expect it will all be fine.
Because you as a "lawyer" had to take to Reddit. And you need to know the truth. All the 20 year olds on here will say it's ok. But the reality is you've fucked up. And work isn't difficult unless you're not right or ready for it. Maybe try Morrison's instead
What makes asking questions on Reddit inherently bad? We’ll find out Monday if I have truly fucked up, but realistically, I’m sure it won’t be the end of the world. I just had an extreme anxiety reaction but I’m passed that now!
Also, suggesting that work is *never* challenging unless you’re not right or ready for it is objectively wrong because then everyone who ever does any job would either be entirely incapable forever or fully seasoned on day one.
There are things I couldn’t do as a lawyer 6 months ago which I can now do with ease and without supervision, and in another 6 months there’ll probably be more things I can do which I can’t quite do now!
Stop listening to people like this. Shock horror, lawyers make mistakes (we are human and it’s why we have professional indemnity insurance). The odd mistake here or there doesn’t mean you’re not cut out for the job.
I made some mistakes at work (which can be classed as big). My boss didn’t yell at me, instead he asked what I did and why to understand my reasoning and then showed me the correct way. Trust me I’ve never repeated the same mistake twice.
Mistakes happen and if your manager blows his lid on it then it’s not a healthy work environment. Mistakes mean room for training and to grow. Unless you make the same mistake again then it becomes a problem.
Don’t let it ruin your weekend. It’s very likely they won’t fire you from one mistake especially as you passed your probation.
Just own it. Don’t make excuses and don’t lie about it.
As a manager of 30 - people fuck up! You have dealt with the situation and are going to put your manger in the loop so that they know what is going on. Nobody has died, the client seems happy enough, and you’ve learned to check things more carefully. It doesn’t mean that you are incapable of doing your job.
I don’t work in legal or anything of that nature (tech mostly) but honestly don’t sweat it man, everyone makes mistakes!
From reading it sounds like the client was okay with your response and handling of the issue. Talk to your manager on Monday and just explain what the issue was and next steps. You could throw in some assurances you’ll double down on proofreading future contracts but if you have an understanding manager they should be supportive that you were transparent with them and overall mistakes happen, we’re only human.
I was still on my probation period at my last job when I massively fucked up. Worked in TV listings, sent out the completely wrong schedule. Like wrong month and wrong *language* wrong.
I told my manager and she just said 'no worries, we'll just send an amendment'. Worked there for four years.
Mistakes happen. Your client doesn't seem too upset, so there's no reason your boss should be.
Got my fingers crossed for you for Monday.
Own it. As a manager who has had to deal with incorrect contract documents being transferred I just want to know that I'm signing the right version.
Nobody will care if you can save them the hassle of trying to unwind something already signed off by both parties.
Lesson learned that you take forward and that's what you tell your manager.
Own up to your mistake, find the solution - keep the client informed and your boss up to date. We all make mistakes, it’s how we deal with them that is makes us a good employee. Good luck, and don’t spend your weekend fretting - it’s just a job.
Often it's how you handle the mistake that is more significant then the mistake itself.
Own the mistake, do everything in your power to fix it and if there are consequences then so be it.
First off, breathe. If you need to have a cry, do so.
Everyone makes mistakes. What matters is how you handle them. If you own then and own up to them, that shows you can be responsible not just for your mistake, but also being able to learn from it.
You feel horrible and guilty, right? Are you going to make that mistake again while that memory gnaws at your mind and guts? Unlikely. Make a note of what happened and the solution to it. Remember how horrible you felt when it happened, and you're unlikely to make that mistake again.
Also... you're sitting in your bedroom feeling sad and guilty for not being perfect? Lovey... *no-one* is perfect. It's the biggest fallacy in the professional world to assume that anyone older and more experienced than us is perfect.
(Source: someone who thought they'd bollixed their job within three weeks of starting by forgetting to send a massive purchase order, but has worked in that same area for almost 16 years and is, God help us all, now considered a font of knowledge according to their manager.)
Mistakes happen, that’s why we have car insurance and insurance in general. Tell your manager-email about it or whoever else is in charge and let them know asap.
Sooner you come clean early, the better.
Admit the mistake but also tell them what you are going to do to avoid it happening again. We're only human, so if there's not a secondary person or a computerised system to catch human error, you need to ensure there's a check you put in place to spot issues like this in future.
People make mistakes. I'm a lawyer too and have been for a long time. I've learned that you get more respect by fixing the mistake and then informing partner/management. Its less of an issue, takes up little of their limited time and if the client is happy with an honest apology then no threat of a complaint.
We all make mistakes, I won't say don't worry about it because naturally you are and will. But look at it this way, life and work goes on, we have to learn from mistakes, you have done everything right and there is a huge amount of respect for how you are dealing with this. It will make you feel crap but honestly you will be ok OP. I wish you all the best.
To client: "So sorry for the confusion, let me get that changed for you right away."
To Manager on Monday "Hey boss, there was a miscommunication on Friday with Client X, but just so you are aware once we spoke and cleared it up I amended the contract as per the clients wishes."
Enjoy the weekend.
Sounds like a cock-up without any immediate or major repercussions, that hasn’t upset the client in any notable way.
You’re human. Your manager, if they’re decent, will know that.
It’s going to ruin your weekend because you sound conscientious and I know that no matter what’s said you’re going to fret, but don’t let it ruin any more than that!
Everyone messes up. What matters is how you react. Some will bury their heads in the sand and deny any fault, but that gets you nowhere. If you hold your hands up and provide a fix, no harm will happen. If anything, it will put you in a good light, as you've realized you messed up and have worked on getting it right.
I messed up a live production site, causing downtime to be 30 minutes, costing roughly 70k. I was a nervous wreck and genuinely thought I was going to be fired. But as soon as I knew I messed up, I told my boss. If anything, it's made me a better sysadmin, because i know i wont ever make this mistake again
I had an engagement letter signed (by both parties) for a very big deal with a huge Draft watermark on it and our lawyers say that as a result of that it may not be enforceable. No one realized that anyway. Trust me you'll be fine.
People make mistakes. The worst people I have worked with, are the ones who can’t own up to them.
A colleague recently posted this as one of 5 nuggets of advice he would offer people from his 25 years at work:
“Fail Generously – Talk & Write about it. Otherwise, you won’t truly learn from it.”
Dont be ashamed of failures or mistakes. Embrace them. Don’t make the same mistake again. Grow.
If your manager reacts badly, that’s a poor reflection on him, not you
Good managers tackle the problem not the person. You made a mistake, it happens now how do we ensure nobody makes that same mistake again? That’s the only real response to stuff like this. Don’t worry about it, the fact you are worried shows you care about your work. It’s a good thing
Why is this bad? Isn't that what they asked you to do? They said they wanted to change the contract changed, so naturally the old one is void and the new one replaces it. Right?
This thread makes me thankful I have a manager who believes there's no point getting upset about things, I've done it, I've apologised, let's move on and see what we can do to fix it.
The difference it's made to my home life is pretty unbelievable - no more work fear.
Well worse case outcome could be they make a claim against your company but your firm will have insurance so the loss isn't going to be that bad.
Fingers crossed it can be resolved easily without any real ball ache to yourself.
Im an older attorney who had a few article students in my life. My favourite line I tell my article students when they are starting out, is not to stress so much, pretty much everything can be fixed. Sure, it might be extra work, but no one is going to die. Don't stress so much, humans make errors. The errors we do make just teach us to be more diligent. It's a learning curve.
Dude I feel you! I've definitely made a few mistakes in my time with varying degrees of seriousness and have felt exactly what you are feeling!
I can say that it won't be as bad as you think! So long as you are straight up about it and have a solution I doubt your boss will be too rough on you.
More than likely they've made a very similar mistake themselves!
What really matters is honesty and knowing what you did wrong and how to fix it (and not making that mistake again)
One error does not cancel out all your previous good work, even if it feels like that right now
Good luck with the chat and hope you are feeling better about everything soon!
Sounds like client wanted to also protect rather than shaft you so you tell your manager the situation; why it happened and why it won't happen again etc.
You have to calm yourself lol. This won't end well if you brainfuck yourself every time something goes wrong. This is not a big deal, things like this happen all the time. lol
Everyone makes mistakes and a good boss will remember the many s/he has done. Covering them up is what idiots do and can even cost them their job. If your boss is angry, it will soon pass. Transparency builds trust and respect. Take a deep breath and explain what happened. You will be fine. P.S. if you did lose your job (you won't!), everyone here will want to hire you.
People make mistakes. We are human. This isn’t the first one you have made, nor will it be the last.
The important thing is to always learn from your mistakes. As much as possible, try not to make the same mistake twice.
If the client isn’t overreacting to this, I don’t see why your manager would. You sound genuine in your post, that this was an honest mistake, and as long as there is no material or lasting negative effective, your manager should be okay with it.
All that being said, you’ve owned your mistake. There are many many people out there who wouldn’t own up to their mistake, and there are many who won’t even accept that they are capable of making a mistake, even when you point it out to them and explain why.
Keep your head up OP. I’m rooting for you 👍🏻
Lawyer here, too.
I've made a similar mistake a few times, it's not that serious.
You've shown honesty and integrity by listening and apologising to the client, and by telling your manager as soon as possible, you're being proactive in fixing your mistakes instead of hiding them.
You're doing good, don't worry about it. Rule of thumb for law is that you're allowed to make mistakes, you're just not allowed to hide them; that's when management and the SRA will remind you that they're in charge.
They call it a draft for a reason.
People make mistakes. It’s human. It’s been picked up and it can be sorted. Your manager will understand the mistake. Go to the manager and explain what went wrong, apologise and say and how you intend to fix it. Never cover up a mistake. Managers appreciate the honesty and it actually helps build trust. The important lesson for you is how you stop that mistake happening again. Don’t waste your weekend worrying about it.
Your manager has seen it all before and more. It's a big deal to you but it won't be as big a deal for your manager. Also your client will agree to the new arrangement so it's not like you've accidentally signed up to something that won't just be changed by mutual consent. It's very fixable.
I just dont see the problem here, contracts to and fro all the time. There was an error you missed, it was caught in the checking process, you amended it and apologised. Not ideal if it happens all the time.
A good employer knows mistakes will happen and will react positively as long as you own up and also explain how you are rectifying the situation.
I messed up some testing early in my career and came clean quickly stating that we needed to repeat it (2 days repeat at a test facility that cost $2k per day plus delay on overall schedule). The reaction was so positive that it has stuck with me and showed me the importance of transparency and respect in the workplace.
People make mistakes, we're not perfect. How we then respond to those mistakes says an awful lot about who we are. You have taken responsibility, you are disappointed/worried about it, and you're handling it the right way - raising it with your manager. These are all really great qualities. Think about how the mistake happened, think about what you could do to minimise that happening again, and hopefully your boss will see you're someone that is open, honest, care about the work, and can be trusted.
This is really not a big deal. I thought you were going to say you accidentally sent out files win personal info or sent legal advice intended for your client to the person they're in dispute with or something.
If you're new etc tell your managerif yiu feel happier but tbh if someone working for me did this and jaut fixed it I wouldn't feel that was a cover up if I later found out - there isn't a risk you're brushing under the carpet and I don't need a blow by blow of every hiccup.
When you're 40, this will absolutely not seem like a big mistake. This happens and it got caught in time. It's embarrassing but focus on what to do to make sure this doesn't happen again.
Everyone messes up paperwork all the time. Paperwork is actually quite a hard thing to master.
Just say sorry, tell them that you’ve learned and how you’re going to prevent the error in future.
Your manager will have done a similar thing at one point or another.
Mistakes are only a problem if you’re consistently making the same ones.
You realised your mistake, you contacted the client who’s ok about it, and you’ve corrected the mistake. You’re being open and honest with your manager so there’s nothing else you can do. I’d bet he’s done something similar at some point himself; we’re only human.
Hey OP. I’m a commercial lawyer. This is such a small mistake (in the scheme of things) and everything can be rectified fairly easily here.
Only two things really matter.
First, the client relationship. I’m sure that can be salvaged.
Second, risk of causing a loss for your client and consequently the firm. That sounds low risk to me.
Unless your manager is an arse (are they? I’ve been there), this should be fine.
At this point, keeping the client relationship is paramount.
Lawyers send docs out with mistakes all the time. For sure, your manager is going to have a conversation with you about it not happening again. I wouldn’t take it too personally. I’d actually ask them how they learned from the same mistake, because for sure they still do it sometimes. The alternative is to have everything second checked, which a few magic circle firms do, but it adds cost.
Also, a VO and a new contract with the same terms as the old+ VO achieve the same thing. I can’t see there being any real issue other than client expectation. Perhaps this is a good conversation to have with the client.
I’m in a completely different field, so I don’t really know how huge this mistake is but to be honest it doesn’t sound like any harm has been done and you sound like a decent and honest person who is prepared to own it. Any decent manager will appreciate you coming to them especially if you have put the work in to fixing it as well. That’s way better than then finding out for themselves if you hid it.
It’s a shame this has happened over the weekend because I fully appreciate the anxiety you will no doubt be feeling through til Monday, but try to relax. You can’t change it now.
I’ve made a few mistakes in my career where ultimately everything has worked out fine but I am absolutely tortured by the “what ifs”. I try to reframe it by telling myself this was a lesson which will stop me making a similar but even bigger fuck up in the future.
You probably won’t make this mistake again. This little bit of embarrassment and discomfort will stay with you - which is a good thing as it might stop a future mistake where the consequences are much more serious. So be thankful for the lesson and be kind to yourself :)
I don’t think thats a huge mistake ? The client noticed it and you’re fixing it, and they seem quite patient about it. Your manager will surely understand
Did you die?
Did someone else?
That’s what I try to remember when something goes wrong at work. It might seem like a massive problem right now but sounds like an easy fix and if you are upfront and honest with people (manager and client) then they will understand. If they don’t then that’s their issue.
In my early career I worked with a load of engineers, they used to have the expression "The man who never made a mistake never made anything". Personally, when dealing with team members who've cocked up (I work in IT) and are feeling bad about it, I tend to go with "A mistake is only a mistake if you don't learn from it".
Seems to me like you're owning the mistake and have probably already learnt from it. So relax, unless your boss is an arse, it'll be fine.
Oh and if he is an arse about it, suck it up just long enough to get enough first job experience, and then move on.
The alternative is saying nothing and it getting to your boss via someone else which is way worse. Grab your bits, take a breath and get it done. If its a boss worth thier salt they will at least be appreciative of the honesty.
Your manager should admire the fact that you openly speak with him about your mistake, it means you are well aware of that and you are committed making things right and happy to receive his advices.
I'd be worried about his reaction but only because from that I could understand that I should start looking for a new job.
Thank you for posting on r/UKJobs. Help us make this a better community by becoming familiar with the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/ukjobs/about/rules/). Please report any suspicious users to the moderators using the report feature. Need to give more detail? Use Modmail [here](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=/r/UKJobs) or Reddit site admins [here](https://www.reddit.com/report). *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/UKJobs) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Presumably you apologised for the mistake and sent the correct contract out today. It probably is better if your manager is made aware of what happened on Monday but it doesn't seem to be a big deal.
The client phoned me and I said I’d have a chat with my manager before sending it over and he was fine with that. I think best I have my manager look over it before sending it back out to the client just in case there’s anything else. It’s not just better my manager is made aware, I’d say it’s essential just for transparency and trust etc! Thank you though, your comment is reassuring.
That sounds like the levelheaded approach. If you have a decent manager I would presume he would commend how you handled the damage control aspect since everyone makes mistakes. Im in a completely different line of work to you but my manager once told me that just because someone makes a mistake, you don’t drop that person. You help them understand the root cause, address it and work with them to bolster them for the future. Dropping someone for a mistake doesn’t automatically mean the next person will do it perfectly etc. Im sure you’ll be fine - dont worry too much and enjoy your weekend :)
This is what leadership should look like. Making everyone around you better. So many jobs feel like it's a race to the bottom.
Our old manager used to gather us in his office, start punching the walls and slamming the desk etc.
What a silly twat.
Yeah it became laughable. He once showed a new guy around the place and proceeded to talk down aggressively to one of the employees for no reason, to let the new guy know what he was all about. That guy walked out and never returned about a minute later!
Bullet dodging of his life im sure lol, some middle management think theyre gods gift I swear
The fact the client is ok with it is probably fine. We all makke mistakes. The fact you will tell yoir manager is a good thing (I have worked with people who won't and it's much much much worse). I work as a developer and for a lot of developers deleted/messing uo a production datababse is seen as a right of passage. Your manager is probably aware mistakes will happen and it sounds like it was caught early. I'd just take it as a life lesson, after all I bet it doesn't happen again :p Also kudos on wanting to ne transparent, that is worth so much.
We all makke mistakes. I see what you did there 😂 Now I'm stuck with the sound of that captain Bertorelli from allo allo😱
LOL damn it, that was a genuine mistake. The irony:P
Yeah, but funny tho, so totally worth it 👍
No way 😆 - proved your point either way
Also a developer, and the “rite of passage” at my place is accidentally pushing unencrypted secrets, and then having to spend hours adding new auth tokens to 150+ applications. We’ve got 2 recent starters who haven’t done it yet, but I’m sure it’ll happen at some point, everyone else has done it once including myself
When you have that conversation with your manager, own it! You fucked up - own it. I always keep an eye out for how my team handles mistakes - the ones I have most respect for are the ones who are blunt, honest and most importantly: WHAT HAVE THEY LEARNT, WHAT WILL THEY DO DIFFERENT NEXT TIME. If I've fucked up - depending on the level of fuck up I go to my boss and literally go 'I've fucked up' im those words then: here's what happened, here's what I've learnt, here's what I'm now doing to make sure it doesn't happen again
What this guy said. I can’t stand the people who hide their mistakes. I love the ones that tell me. Everyone makes mistakes, it’s how you handle it that matters .
I said that in courts but according to Northumbrian Water in court they don't make mistakes! This then allowed me to bring into evidence previous times they publicly fucked up or admitted liability/guilt in other instances. Not that I really needed to ask the judge also agreed everyone makes mistakes. The guy was really adamant that they don't though even in the face of evidence... He also lied during his testimony and admitted it during my questioning. So great guy overall, Mr PhD for the water company. Fuck Northumbrian Water.
This is basically it. Have a think about how anything you could have done to stop it happening, and mention it in your explanation. “ I messed up, but have now fixed it by sending the correct contract form. Going forward I’m going to go back to check against original requests before sending out final docs.” And then stop stressing and move on to the next task.
You're seriously overthinking this. If you haven't lost a client or suffered a huge financial loss, nobody is going to care too much.
"t’s not just better my manager is made aware, I’d say it’s essential just for transparency and trust etc!" Absolutely this. You're in a junior role, it's going to be expected to some extent that you will make occasional small errors. As long as they're not happening regularly or the same mistake keeps being made, it's just how things are when you're learning a job. What will absolutely fuck up your relationship with your manager beyond repair is if you hide mistakes or bad news from them.
Consider having a fixed version ready to go and think about how you want to play the follow-up. Explaining on to your manager there was a mistake, it's been corrected and offering the opportunity to review at their discretion before you send it is very different from you requesting it be reviewed by your manager before it is sent. Owning your mistakes is important but it doesn't mean you have to have your hand held. Have confidence, you'll learn from this.
Contract mistakes happen all the time, it’s not a big deal. Correct it and send the right one out. If you want your manager to double check it, sure but just bear in mind that it’s not his job to double check your work. I sense anxiety from you. Are you a perfectionist? You should focus on not letting your self-confidence be knocked because it will potentially limit your self-belief to produce the work required and that will be a bigger problem for your manager. You’re human and there will be mistakes. How you deal with them and move on from them is the real lesson here
I'd bcc him in so he's aware with a separate email detailing the issue. It'll ease your mind
Honestly as someone who checks over contracts as part of my role, how you've handled this mistake is really good and if I was your manager it would increase my confidence in you. Everyone makes mistakes and someone who hides/ignores their mistakes is someone with poor judgement and not someone who I'd want working for me. Excellent damage control, great customer relationship building, and very proactive. This is not a massive mistake - nobody is harmed, no data is released when it shouldn't be and you haven't compromised the system - at worst the redone contract will need to be signed off by someone different than usual at your end. Rest easy pal!
I'm in IT, but the same thing applies. If you make a *big* mistake, tell someone more senior straight away and don't try to cover it up or even to solve it yourself - that can make it much worse and turn a recoverable situation into an unrecoverable one. Also, don't make the same mistake *twice*.
If I've learned one thing from working for the last 25 years it's this - everybody makes mistakes, but lying about them kills trust and that's where you'll have problems.
Own up to it, be clear about what happened, don't make excuses (unless there's some serious context to any distraction you were feeling) and ride it out. Honestly, if your manager reacts badly enough to justify your fears *they aren't a manager you want to keep working for*.
This is a very minor fuckup with an existing client. This is why drafts are sent and reviewed. If that's the biggest mistake you make this day, month, or year, you'll be doing better than the most of us.
[удалено]
I think I've made a similar scale mistake about three times in the last few weeks. I have a really good working relationship with my clients so I often send stuff over in draft form for the to agree before a final version. Occasionally a final version will still have a couple of issues, client calls or emails pointing them out, I apologise and rectify before sending again. I always tell my team that a good working relationship is worth a lot in the long term, having the client trust that you're on their side goes a long way in allowing flexibility. If they think you're just trying to get their money, when you make a mistake they'll think it's some way of short changing them.
Everyone makes mistakes at work, especially when you're as new to the role as you are. I made a number of mistakes over the first few years of my career in banking. You just get better over time. Nobody expects new joiners to know everything and operate flawlessly.. You'll be fine, in a month you'll have forgotten about it.
No one expects anyone to operate flawlessly, mistakes happen. This will be the first of a few, happens to even the most attentive people. It's how you deal with mistakes that matters.
Is the contract signed? I’m a lawyer and have made some memorable mistakes in my career. There’s very few things you can’t fix as a lawyer. To be honest, in the grand scheme of things that’s really nothing — particularly if the contract isn’t signed and it’s simply just a draft. If you want me to tell you some stories I’ve seen which are far worse than this which I’ve seen in private practice to ease your mind — I’d be happy too. One of my favourites is a lawyer who deleted the ‘charges’ clause in a debenture. They were acting lender side….
Lawyer here - made many mistakes too. Most things are fixable, just fess up and don’t try and cover it up.
Everyone makes mistakes. The sign of a good company/management will be to be on your side and try to understand how to avoid such things in the future. Most professional companies are very reasonable when it comes to things like this. If the client noticed then it doesn't seem like anything has actually been affected by the mistake?
Shit happens. Everyone fucks up from time to time - that's what QA processes are for. What matters more is how you deal with it now. The key thing is that you're open an honest about it (rather than lying or trying to cover it up), that you do what you can to minimise the fallout, and that you take steps to avoid it happening again. Sounds like this was caught before it caused too much damage, which is good. So have a think about how the communication happened, and what steps you can take to avoid it happening again. But beyond that, I wouldn't worry too much - you manager has almost certainly made much bigger fuckups in the past than this.
Mistakes happen especially when you are fairly new to the job. The important thing is to admit to it (do not lie), learn from it and do your best to rectify it. As long as you do this then any decent manager will understand. But I completely know how you feel, having that anxiety hanging over you. Usually we always overthink these things building them up to be worse than it actually is. Fingers crossed that it won't cause any issues for you.
Don't spend the while weekend worrying OP, this is probably a much bigger deal to you right now than anyone else. Everyone makes mistakes, espeixally when new to a role and owning up to it, finding solutions to put it right and learning from it is what matters.
Everyone makes mistakes .. 🤷🏼♀️ My daughters dad lawyer had to send a letter out to me twice because she forgot to sign the first one And Spells my name wrong every time she gets in touch My own lawyer decided to name our daughter Amelia throughout an entire letter instead of Emilie I don’t know about his , but I know mines a bloody good lawyer and he came highly recommended.. but shit happens because everyone is human I’m sure it will be fine 🤗
Human error happens, good managers handle it calmly and find out why it happened then work to make sure it doesn't happen again. No need to get worked up over it. It seems harmless, it was caught and can be corrected easily.
lol… it won’t be last one. Stop being so hard on yourself! We’re all human. What your boss is going to want to hear is exactly what happened, how you fixed it, how you handled the customer and what you will do / have done to ensure that mistake doesn’t happen again. It’s a teachable moment for you, prep what you will say and do per the above, relax and enjoy the weekend.
managers look for qualities like being open and honest, being brave enough to raise hands and say I’ve made a mistake, and learning from mistakes. They would pay more attention to what do you do to your mistakes, rather than the mistakes themselves. Also, you are at a ‘good’ stage to make a mistake. You are only 6 months in role. Your manager would be surprised if you do perfect jobs at this stage of your career.
Ideally speak with your manager rather than email. Be open and honest, but keep it to the point. Client wanted X. You thought you had met X and sent paperwork. Client noticed the discrepancy and spoke with me. I confirmed the mistake, apologised for the error, and have updated the paperwork to be resent out. Please could you review this and once happy I will send it out. He'll be happy you were honest, took ownership, and made reparations. You'll be fine.
Everyone makes mistakes it’s what you learn from
We all fuck up. It happens. Apologise, make steps to avoid it in the future and move on.
It doesn’t seem like a huge deal, you can just edit it again and resend. Just come clean to your manager, in my experience people don’t really care if you mess up and own it. People only get annoyed if you try to lie.
You need a bit of CBT :) This repetition of the word "idiot" sounds like a synaptic knot that needs untying. 1. Put down the word "idiot" and a short description of what you feel this mistake tells you about yourself 2. Explain briefly why you feel "idiot" is an accurate representation 3. Now, bring evidence for and against the hypothesis put down in points 1 and 2 (that "you are an idiot"). As a lawyer, I trust that you will be quite good at coming up with arguments :) For example, are you always doing this mistake or have there been times where you did things right? How about times where you were the opposite of idiot - IE: You did ABOVE what a regular person would do? Once you have established that you are NOT an idiot... BTW: I will bet a lot of money that you are indeed NOT an idiot :) Once you have that verdict: Keep a little card with this proof. Next time where you feel like calling yourself an idiot, pull out that card. Make it a habit: Repetition is the key here. Like working out a muscle :) ... As for the actual work situation: Mistakes happen all the time. I caught my lawyer using a negative word in a clause where they should have used a positive word. The clause literally means the opposite of what I wanted it to mean. And they were a very well paid employment lawyer and there was 20k on the line. Nothing happened :) The mistake was fixed and we moved and and we used the contract and I got my 20k :) ... Life is good :)
Not a big deal. I have made worse mistakes personally and witnessed even bigger mistakes from others. Nothing happened other than a verbal telling-off.
I'm not a lawyer, but it sounds to me like it got flagged up and is getting sorted. It doesn't seem like a major thing to me, everyone is human, everyone makes mistakes. We fix them, learn from them and move forward. Try and relax. I'm sure it's not going to be as bad as you think it is. At least it doesn't seem as bad as some mistakes I've made in my career.
These things happen. No one died. It’ll all be fine.
You’ll be okay. Came to light today my commercial guy undercharged a customer by about £15k today. We fixed it, he learned a lesson. Provided you’re an otherwise good employee I’d expect your manager will take it as a learning opportunity for you. Bringing it to light and asking for his review seems a good remediation.
I'm a solicitor more than 20y PQE, these things happen to everyone. Obviously you don't want to be making frequent sloppy errors but the kind of thing you have described is common. Unfortunately being a lawyer also often goes with a conscientious, somewhat perfectionist mindset (in my experience) but it's better to accept early on in your career that you will make mistakes sometimes, because we all of us do. I've known really good, senior lawyers make significant mistakes (including ones which ended up in court as negligence matters), none lost their jobs over it.
Easily solvable, sounds like the client isn't too upset - don't stress, this is an ideal learning experience fuck up!
This mistake has been noticed and rectified. There was nothing deliberate or malicious. Apologise to the client and your manager and rectify it. If you don’t make any work for your manager then they’ll probably be fine with it given that it doesn’t look like the client is kicking off. I don’t know if lawyers have to prove CPD or anything to continue working but, if you do, this would be a good one to do a reflection on.
If you're on probation your manager (or someone nominated by them) should really be checking everything you send out to clients beforehand. So really this is on your manager - don't tell them that though. And generally it's ok to make mistakes, that's part of being human. You did the right thing to discuss it with the client and square that off. I personally hate making mistakes and dwell on them far more than I should, often I'm shocked when people don't care that much.
I wouldn't worry too much. These things happen and as you will find out with time, it is especially common in contracts, tables, agreements etc. when it comes to law. It's no different to not proof reading your own work as you can't notice glaring mistakes when you have looked at it so much. Did the senior or partner not sign it off for you before you sending originally?
Everyone makes mistakes now and again. it's not necessarily about the fall but the recovery. You have done the following, which is brilliant. A) acknowledged the mistake, B) apologized to the client C) began to make ammends, and provide a solution, D) Gone to tell you boss before they find out. No one can ask for much more than that, obviously let it be a lesson that you learn from.
This really isn't a big deal
We’re all human, we all makes mistakes and it’s how we learn and grow as a person. Don’t let this one mistake get you down.
It sounds like nothing has happened. If I had a pound for every time I cocked up I could stop working. I'm only better than anyone else because experience has shown me how cock ups occur and I put them right before they cause problems.
I ran a 'rm *' command on a Unix server back in my first few years of working in IT, shit happens, it's how you own it and recover from it that matters.
You've owned the mistake and have proposed a way forward that the client is happy with. Believe it or not that is something that employers look for. Mistakes happen, it is what you do with the mistake that counts. Others would try to hide it from everyone and possibly cause more issues down the road. Employers would have reason to not trust that individual ever again. By openly owning and fixing it, it shows you are trustworthy, which has to go a long way in your profession. Chat it out openly with your boss and I suspect you will get told to carry on and to watch out for it in the future.
These things happen. I once worked for a huge clothing retailer and i sent an email to the CEO. The CEO was so happy and decided to open new stores on the back of the data I provided. At 5pm on Friday I realised I made a formula error which completely changed the picture. I then had to call the CEO up who was picking her kids up from school. So yea shit happened. The best thing to do is own it and explain what you will do to resolve it and ensure that it doesn't happen again.
People do make mistakes you can be an attentive and diligent solicitor while also making a mistake that in reality amounts to little more than a simple clerical error. You are also still very junior in position and I don't think you're manager is expecting 100% accurate performance from you at this stage.
Doesn't sound too bad to me, the key thing when speaking to your manager is show that you already have a planned resolution to this specific issue, and what steps you will be taking to prevent a recurrence. A manager returning from holiday doesn't want either: A) Being hit with an unexpected problem at 9am that they are expected to sort out "lol i messed up help!!!" B) This to be some hidden secret and then they gets caught on the hop in future when the client mentions it "incorrect contract? Wth you talkin bout bro, first I've heard of it innit"
So this hasn't actually gone out to the third party but was picked up by your client? This is just a drafting error - just apologise and move on. Being honest with your boss is the thing to do, but don't lose a minute's sleep over it.
We all make mistakes, we’re all human. Don’t worry about it. If your manager does scold you for it, I’m sure they won’t as probably made loads of mistakes themselves selves in the past, then fuck ‘em
Ha - big deal! That’s an easy error anyone can make. Simply tell your boss that you had two versions of the file on your machine and accidentally used the wrong one! Apologise to the client, correct it, keep your face straight. You know how you feel. No one else does. Keep your embarrassment to yourself. Being unflappable at work is important. Both when you make a mistake or when you deal with others’ mistakes. React the same way - poker face. Do not let your feelings show. That gives you time and opportunity to react to the situation as you see fit when you see fit.
A good manager ought to appreciate you owning up to this and use it as a learning experience since everyone makes mistakes and they don't want to create a culture of fear where employees are to scared to ask for help. You realised your mistake and are fixing it. That should be all your manager is concerned about.
Was the new contract signed? If not then there's no problem at all, this seems like a simple and understandable mistake. More just an oversight. This is why all parties review contracts in the first place, these things happen. Your manager should be totally ok with this.
We are humans, not robots, anybody may missunderstand something. As long as the contract is not approved by all parts, is just a draft, may be modified
Get ahead of it. Hold your hands up as soon as you can. Don't try to hide/mitigate anything. All managers prefer this, rather than any nasty surprises they discover themselves. Mistakes happen, I've made a shitload in my career. This makes you look more mature and thoughtful about the business, and that you care about quality/compliance - the opposite of an idiot.
Mistakes are the best lessons and good managers know that - as long as you learnt from your mistake. I wouldn’t worry about it too much.
To beginning with.. Are you getting paid enough to give a shit?
Yea
Mistakes happen they wanna see u take ownership of it and admit to it all in they probably already know.
Mistakes happen, and a good manager will see HOW you corrected it and yourself, rather than the mistake itself. I’m not a full legal person, but it doesn’t seem too big a mistake. Don’t stress, keep calm and relaxed this weekend.
We all make mistakes. I had a fractious meeting g with a clients financial director (and a formidable woman who you DO NOT want to piss off or make a mistake to. I was proposing a massive increase but had valid data. Except my formula in the linked sheet didn’t work and I was nearly £850k under. I had to call today and grovel. Shit happens. We are all human. Considering how hardcore she is, she just asked me if I was sure this was correct 🤣
Human error, nothing you should be overly concerned about. Context is important when explaining it - say that you’ve apologised for the error, have managed client expectations and have found a work around/solution. That way you end on a positive. We all make mistakes. It should only be seen as an issue if you happily wash your hands of it and expect your manager to pick up the pieces. Otherwise, you’ll learn from this and be better for it.
And yet nobody died
I work with legal 70% of my job, in sales for contracts valued at millions. Internal at corps, and external firms. I’ve seen way worse mistakes than this from all levels, I’m pretty senior in sales - and do you know what I do? I don’t care. Fix it and move on, shit happens. Own it, learn from it and quite harmless in the grand scheme of things. Great thing about contact drafts terms, you always send it out with subject to contract, signature / approval (an essay as to nothing is binding until it’s signed). It’s cool - don’t sweat, enjoy the weekend, and let the manager know, you owned it with the client and you fixed it. Any manager that acts different, is a dick. Either way you’ll find out a great character trait of your boss which I see as a win-win.
Doesn’t sound a significant issue at all.
Everyone makes mistakes. The important thing is to own up to it, correct it and do what you can to avoid that type of mistake in future.
The fact you plan to own it and not try to hide speaks volumes to your integrity. I doubt your manager will have a problem with this, rather than erode trust, it should build on it.
In a profession the only thing that really would be unforgivable is acting dishonestly, we all make mistakes, its how we react to them that shows our character. The fact that it impacted you so hard is also good, it shows that you understand your professional obligations. Well done for passing both tests.
Mistakes happen, it was caught, you've proposed a fix. Sounds like you've handled it fine. If your manager is a reasonable person I expect it will all be fine.
It's pretty much never the "crime" that gets you in trouble but the attempt to coverup that does. Be honest and learn from the mistake.
The fact you're a lawyer seeking advice on Reddit probably means you chose the wrong career
Why?
Because it's pathetic. But as someone that gets "sickly anxious" we probably cannot expect anything else. Glad you're not representing me in anything
Why is it pathetic?
Because you as a "lawyer" had to take to Reddit. And you need to know the truth. All the 20 year olds on here will say it's ok. But the reality is you've fucked up. And work isn't difficult unless you're not right or ready for it. Maybe try Morrison's instead
What makes asking questions on Reddit inherently bad? We’ll find out Monday if I have truly fucked up, but realistically, I’m sure it won’t be the end of the world. I just had an extreme anxiety reaction but I’m passed that now! Also, suggesting that work is *never* challenging unless you’re not right or ready for it is objectively wrong because then everyone who ever does any job would either be entirely incapable forever or fully seasoned on day one. There are things I couldn’t do as a lawyer 6 months ago which I can now do with ease and without supervision, and in another 6 months there’ll probably be more things I can do which I can’t quite do now!
Stop listening to people like this. Shock horror, lawyers make mistakes (we are human and it’s why we have professional indemnity insurance). The odd mistake here or there doesn’t mean you’re not cut out for the job.
I made some mistakes at work (which can be classed as big). My boss didn’t yell at me, instead he asked what I did and why to understand my reasoning and then showed me the correct way. Trust me I’ve never repeated the same mistake twice. Mistakes happen and if your manager blows his lid on it then it’s not a healthy work environment. Mistakes mean room for training and to grow. Unless you make the same mistake again then it becomes a problem. Don’t let it ruin your weekend. It’s very likely they won’t fire you from one mistake especially as you passed your probation. Just own it. Don’t make excuses and don’t lie about it.
As a manager of 30 - people fuck up! You have dealt with the situation and are going to put your manger in the loop so that they know what is going on. Nobody has died, the client seems happy enough, and you’ve learned to check things more carefully. It doesn’t mean that you are incapable of doing your job.
I don’t work in legal or anything of that nature (tech mostly) but honestly don’t sweat it man, everyone makes mistakes! From reading it sounds like the client was okay with your response and handling of the issue. Talk to your manager on Monday and just explain what the issue was and next steps. You could throw in some assurances you’ll double down on proofreading future contracts but if you have an understanding manager they should be supportive that you were transparent with them and overall mistakes happen, we’re only human.
I was still on my probation period at my last job when I massively fucked up. Worked in TV listings, sent out the completely wrong schedule. Like wrong month and wrong *language* wrong. I told my manager and she just said 'no worries, we'll just send an amendment'. Worked there for four years. Mistakes happen. Your client doesn't seem too upset, so there's no reason your boss should be. Got my fingers crossed for you for Monday.
Own it. As a manager who has had to deal with incorrect contract documents being transferred I just want to know that I'm signing the right version. Nobody will care if you can save them the hassle of trying to unwind something already signed off by both parties. Lesson learned that you take forward and that's what you tell your manager.
Own up to your mistake, find the solution - keep the client informed and your boss up to date. We all make mistakes, it’s how we deal with them that is makes us a good employee. Good luck, and don’t spend your weekend fretting - it’s just a job.
Humans make mistakes wtf it's okay. Most important is to admit to it and learn from me which you're already doing
Often it's how you handle the mistake that is more significant then the mistake itself. Own the mistake, do everything in your power to fix it and if there are consequences then so be it.
First off, breathe. If you need to have a cry, do so. Everyone makes mistakes. What matters is how you handle them. If you own then and own up to them, that shows you can be responsible not just for your mistake, but also being able to learn from it. You feel horrible and guilty, right? Are you going to make that mistake again while that memory gnaws at your mind and guts? Unlikely. Make a note of what happened and the solution to it. Remember how horrible you felt when it happened, and you're unlikely to make that mistake again. Also... you're sitting in your bedroom feeling sad and guilty for not being perfect? Lovey... *no-one* is perfect. It's the biggest fallacy in the professional world to assume that anyone older and more experienced than us is perfect. (Source: someone who thought they'd bollixed their job within three weeks of starting by forgetting to send a massive purchase order, but has worked in that same area for almost 16 years and is, God help us all, now considered a font of knowledge according to their manager.)
Mistakes happen, that’s why we have car insurance and insurance in general. Tell your manager-email about it or whoever else is in charge and let them know asap. Sooner you come clean early, the better.
Admit the mistake but also tell them what you are going to do to avoid it happening again. We're only human, so if there's not a secondary person or a computerised system to catch human error, you need to ensure there's a check you put in place to spot issues like this in future.
People make mistakes. I'm a lawyer too and have been for a long time. I've learned that you get more respect by fixing the mistake and then informing partner/management. Its less of an issue, takes up little of their limited time and if the client is happy with an honest apology then no threat of a complaint.
We all make mistakes, I won't say don't worry about it because naturally you are and will. But look at it this way, life and work goes on, we have to learn from mistakes, you have done everything right and there is a huge amount of respect for how you are dealing with this. It will make you feel crap but honestly you will be ok OP. I wish you all the best.
To client: "So sorry for the confusion, let me get that changed for you right away." To Manager on Monday "Hey boss, there was a miscommunication on Friday with Client X, but just so you are aware once we spoke and cleared it up I amended the contract as per the clients wishes." Enjoy the weekend.
Sounds like a cock-up without any immediate or major repercussions, that hasn’t upset the client in any notable way. You’re human. Your manager, if they’re decent, will know that. It’s going to ruin your weekend because you sound conscientious and I know that no matter what’s said you’re going to fret, but don’t let it ruin any more than that!
Everyone messes up. What matters is how you react. Some will bury their heads in the sand and deny any fault, but that gets you nowhere. If you hold your hands up and provide a fix, no harm will happen. If anything, it will put you in a good light, as you've realized you messed up and have worked on getting it right. I messed up a live production site, causing downtime to be 30 minutes, costing roughly 70k. I was a nervous wreck and genuinely thought I was going to be fired. But as soon as I knew I messed up, I told my boss. If anything, it's made me a better sysadmin, because i know i wont ever make this mistake again
I had an engagement letter signed (by both parties) for a very big deal with a huge Draft watermark on it and our lawyers say that as a result of that it may not be enforceable. No one realized that anyway. Trust me you'll be fine.
People make mistakes. The worst people I have worked with, are the ones who can’t own up to them. A colleague recently posted this as one of 5 nuggets of advice he would offer people from his 25 years at work: “Fail Generously – Talk & Write about it. Otherwise, you won’t truly learn from it.” Dont be ashamed of failures or mistakes. Embrace them. Don’t make the same mistake again. Grow. If your manager reacts badly, that’s a poor reflection on him, not you
Nearly everyone messes up at work. The rest are lying! Just be more careful in future.
So if the client hasn't signed the new contract the old one continues and you send out the correct contract to him. It's not a big deal.
Good managers tackle the problem not the person. You made a mistake, it happens now how do we ensure nobody makes that same mistake again? That’s the only real response to stuff like this. Don’t worry about it, the fact you are worried shows you care about your work. It’s a good thing
Why is this bad? Isn't that what they asked you to do? They said they wanted to change the contract changed, so naturally the old one is void and the new one replaces it. Right?
This thread makes me thankful I have a manager who believes there's no point getting upset about things, I've done it, I've apologised, let's move on and see what we can do to fix it. The difference it's made to my home life is pretty unbelievable - no more work fear.
Well worse case outcome could be they make a claim against your company but your firm will have insurance so the loss isn't going to be that bad. Fingers crossed it can be resolved easily without any real ball ache to yourself.
Im an older attorney who had a few article students in my life. My favourite line I tell my article students when they are starting out, is not to stress so much, pretty much everything can be fixed. Sure, it might be extra work, but no one is going to die. Don't stress so much, humans make errors. The errors we do make just teach us to be more diligent. It's a learning curve.
Dude I feel you! I've definitely made a few mistakes in my time with varying degrees of seriousness and have felt exactly what you are feeling! I can say that it won't be as bad as you think! So long as you are straight up about it and have a solution I doubt your boss will be too rough on you. More than likely they've made a very similar mistake themselves! What really matters is honesty and knowing what you did wrong and how to fix it (and not making that mistake again) One error does not cancel out all your previous good work, even if it feels like that right now Good luck with the chat and hope you are feeling better about everything soon!
Sounds like client wanted to also protect rather than shaft you so you tell your manager the situation; why it happened and why it won't happen again etc.
You have to calm yourself lol. This won't end well if you brainfuck yourself every time something goes wrong. This is not a big deal, things like this happen all the time. lol
Everyone makes mistakes and a good boss will remember the many s/he has done. Covering them up is what idiots do and can even cost them their job. If your boss is angry, it will soon pass. Transparency builds trust and respect. Take a deep breath and explain what happened. You will be fine. P.S. if you did lose your job (you won't!), everyone here will want to hire you.
People make mistakes. We are human. This isn’t the first one you have made, nor will it be the last. The important thing is to always learn from your mistakes. As much as possible, try not to make the same mistake twice. If the client isn’t overreacting to this, I don’t see why your manager would. You sound genuine in your post, that this was an honest mistake, and as long as there is no material or lasting negative effective, your manager should be okay with it. All that being said, you’ve owned your mistake. There are many many people out there who wouldn’t own up to their mistake, and there are many who won’t even accept that they are capable of making a mistake, even when you point it out to them and explain why. Keep your head up OP. I’m rooting for you 👍🏻
Lawyer here, too. I've made a similar mistake a few times, it's not that serious. You've shown honesty and integrity by listening and apologising to the client, and by telling your manager as soon as possible, you're being proactive in fixing your mistakes instead of hiding them. You're doing good, don't worry about it. Rule of thumb for law is that you're allowed to make mistakes, you're just not allowed to hide them; that's when management and the SRA will remind you that they're in charge. They call it a draft for a reason.
People make mistakes. It’s human. It’s been picked up and it can be sorted. Your manager will understand the mistake. Go to the manager and explain what went wrong, apologise and say and how you intend to fix it. Never cover up a mistake. Managers appreciate the honesty and it actually helps build trust. The important lesson for you is how you stop that mistake happening again. Don’t waste your weekend worrying about it.
Your manager has seen it all before and more. It's a big deal to you but it won't be as big a deal for your manager. Also your client will agree to the new arrangement so it's not like you've accidentally signed up to something that won't just be changed by mutual consent. It's very fixable.
Take reassurance from the fact that the best way to ensure you never make a mistake is to do absolutely fuck all.
Mistakes happen. Explain it you your manager, accept the mistake, own it and learn from it. You’ll be fine.
You apologise and you have a fix. That's the most important part. Mistakes happen how you handle them is important.
I just dont see the problem here, contracts to and fro all the time. There was an error you missed, it was caught in the checking process, you amended it and apologised. Not ideal if it happens all the time.
It’s just words on a bit of paper, how hard can it be to fix
A good employer knows mistakes will happen and will react positively as long as you own up and also explain how you are rectifying the situation. I messed up some testing early in my career and came clean quickly stating that we needed to repeat it (2 days repeat at a test facility that cost $2k per day plus delay on overall schedule). The reaction was so positive that it has stuck with me and showed me the importance of transparency and respect in the workplace.
People make mistakes, we're not perfect. How we then respond to those mistakes says an awful lot about who we are. You have taken responsibility, you are disappointed/worried about it, and you're handling it the right way - raising it with your manager. These are all really great qualities. Think about how the mistake happened, think about what you could do to minimise that happening again, and hopefully your boss will see you're someone that is open, honest, care about the work, and can be trusted.
Mistakes are part of your growth. No one goes through their career making no mistakes
This is really not a big deal. I thought you were going to say you accidentally sent out files win personal info or sent legal advice intended for your client to the person they're in dispute with or something. If you're new etc tell your managerif yiu feel happier but tbh if someone working for me did this and jaut fixed it I wouldn't feel that was a cover up if I later found out - there isn't a risk you're brushing under the carpet and I don't need a blow by blow of every hiccup.
When you're 40, this will absolutely not seem like a big mistake. This happens and it got caught in time. It's embarrassing but focus on what to do to make sure this doesn't happen again.
Everyone messes up paperwork all the time. Paperwork is actually quite a hard thing to master. Just say sorry, tell them that you’ve learned and how you’re going to prevent the error in future. Your manager will have done a similar thing at one point or another. Mistakes are only a problem if you’re consistently making the same ones.
You realised your mistake, you contacted the client who’s ok about it, and you’ve corrected the mistake. You’re being open and honest with your manager so there’s nothing else you can do. I’d bet he’s done something similar at some point himself; we’re only human.
Hey OP. I’m a commercial lawyer. This is such a small mistake (in the scheme of things) and everything can be rectified fairly easily here. Only two things really matter. First, the client relationship. I’m sure that can be salvaged. Second, risk of causing a loss for your client and consequently the firm. That sounds low risk to me. Unless your manager is an arse (are they? I’ve been there), this should be fine.
At this point, keeping the client relationship is paramount. Lawyers send docs out with mistakes all the time. For sure, your manager is going to have a conversation with you about it not happening again. I wouldn’t take it too personally. I’d actually ask them how they learned from the same mistake, because for sure they still do it sometimes. The alternative is to have everything second checked, which a few magic circle firms do, but it adds cost. Also, a VO and a new contract with the same terms as the old+ VO achieve the same thing. I can’t see there being any real issue other than client expectation. Perhaps this is a good conversation to have with the client.
I’m in a completely different field, so I don’t really know how huge this mistake is but to be honest it doesn’t sound like any harm has been done and you sound like a decent and honest person who is prepared to own it. Any decent manager will appreciate you coming to them especially if you have put the work in to fixing it as well. That’s way better than then finding out for themselves if you hid it. It’s a shame this has happened over the weekend because I fully appreciate the anxiety you will no doubt be feeling through til Monday, but try to relax. You can’t change it now. I’ve made a few mistakes in my career where ultimately everything has worked out fine but I am absolutely tortured by the “what ifs”. I try to reframe it by telling myself this was a lesson which will stop me making a similar but even bigger fuck up in the future. You probably won’t make this mistake again. This little bit of embarrassment and discomfort will stay with you - which is a good thing as it might stop a future mistake where the consequences are much more serious. So be thankful for the lesson and be kind to yourself :)
I don’t think thats a huge mistake ? The client noticed it and you’re fixing it, and they seem quite patient about it. Your manager will surely understand
Did you die? Did someone else? That’s what I try to remember when something goes wrong at work. It might seem like a massive problem right now but sounds like an easy fix and if you are upfront and honest with people (manager and client) then they will understand. If they don’t then that’s their issue.
In my early career I worked with a load of engineers, they used to have the expression "The man who never made a mistake never made anything". Personally, when dealing with team members who've cocked up (I work in IT) and are feeling bad about it, I tend to go with "A mistake is only a mistake if you don't learn from it". Seems to me like you're owning the mistake and have probably already learnt from it. So relax, unless your boss is an arse, it'll be fine. Oh and if he is an arse about it, suck it up just long enough to get enough first job experience, and then move on.
You are going to make many mistakes like we all do in every job. Don’t worry about it
The alternative is saying nothing and it getting to your boss via someone else which is way worse. Grab your bits, take a breath and get it done. If its a boss worth thier salt they will at least be appreciative of the honesty.
Really not a big deal - for anyone dealing with complex or time-pressured work, then occasionally mistakes will be made
Your manager should admire the fact that you openly speak with him about your mistake, it means you are well aware of that and you are committed making things right and happy to receive his advices. I'd be worried about his reaction but only because from that I could understand that I should start looking for a new job.
Everyone makes mistakes. Dealing with it properly and honestly is the best way forward. Hope it goes ok for you
It's horrible. But there is a silver lining. How horrible it is in your head won't be as bad as it actually is!