How to Manage Your Anxiety When Mistakes Are Costly

It’s natural to feel terrified of messing up at work, but you can reduce both your stress and the risk of making an error. First, distinguish between critical and not-so-critical risks—and focus (most of) your time and energy on the former. Then, rather than trying to reduce mistakes through willpower and perfectionism, adopt systems and sustainable habits to mitigate those critical risks.

Enlist support from colleagues to address your weaknesses and pain points while also finding solutions that leverage your strengths (for instance, if you’re visually creative, you might create visual reminders). Address any self-sabotaging behaviors, like not asking for support when you need it.

Finally, tackle some of the not-so-critical risks—or delegate them—to reduce any potential distraction from the big stuff. Remember, the goal here isn’t to become a perfect employee who doesn’t make mistakes; it’s to design a sustainable system around you that diligently reduces risks.