Abby's First Week

Bonus Dad was an engineering manager for an aerospace company for many years. He once told me the first piece of information he'd tell new employees was not to be afraid to make a mistake. 

Those words came back to me Friday when I was talking with Abby. You see, next week--her second week on the job--she will be alone in the office while the rest of us are in Las Vegas. She's nervous. Terrified really. 

I said to her: "If I thought for a moment you couldn't handle things here while we were gone, I would have changed your hire date to February 28 or I would have picked someone else." Abby timidly smiled and thanked me. 

Then, I remembered Bonus Dad's wisdom from years gone by. I said, "I give you permission to make mistakes." And Abby's face completely changed. She relaxed and for the first time all week she seemed confident.