Any advice on dealing with work mistake blues

[SeaOwl]

Today’s a rough one: started with making multiple small mistakes at work. How do I keep my morale up when I make such stupid mistakes. I feel so frustrated that I can’t just do things without my brain overlooking certain bits.

My partner tried to tell me to not put so much pressure into my work and have it define my self worth. But when I make mistakes I beat myself up so much it’s unhealthy. I highly doubt these little things will lead to me to be let go but I know it is frustrating to my boss, I feel so frustrated with myself right now. Functioning today is really difficult but I need to do stuff all I want to do is hide in a bundle of blankets in my bed.

[SciFiGuy]

SeaOwl, this is something that hits me very close to home. I struggle with work mistakes regularly as well and it's one of my biggest stressors. You're not alone in that. The worst is when it's entirely obvious on the second lookthrough.

I have one peice of advice for the work mistakes and two things to offer on how you feel about them.

First: If relevant, get a second pair of eyes on things before sending them to your boss. If that's not possible take a 5 minute break and give things one last look over before you send them. If you work with your hands, just ask the question "is this done" before moving on to the next thing. It takes time to build that routine but it's helped me a lot... unless of course I forget to do it, which is often.

Second: I completely relate to this. The small things do add up, and you have to let yourself be upset about them. Whatever you're feeling is legitimate, even if the impact won't be severe. Society has been set up by those who don't struggle the way we do, who extract the value from the work we do every day for their profit. Your manager's frustrations aren't about you as a person, and it's crucial you remember that.

Third: Remember that small mistakes are exactly that. Small mistakes are frustrating and I fully admit that I often find myself very upset about them, but the overal impact is small. You have to remember that neurotypical society teaches our brains to be unkind to ourselves.

I believe in you, and I know how frustrating it is to be in that situation - I can't wait to see other people's advice on this same subject because it's something I struggle with too.

[FerariBrain]

Oh Sea Owl, I just want to hug you. I can really relate. I had an amazing Supervisor who said something to me as a response to several small but horrifying (to me) mistakes I made: Slow Down to Go Faster.

That sunk into my very soul. I started re-reading every email before I hit send. I looked up info before I just gave the answer I “knew” was correct. It’s a simple mantra that’s made a world of difference to my peace of mind and self-talk, and saves time on corrections.