Embrace the Career Bloopers

Back in the day, we used to buy DVDs of our favorite movies. On those DVDs, you would find various chapters at the end of the movie, like cast interviews, behind-the-scenes content, outtakes, and bloopers.

Outtakes and bloopers were always, by far, the best part of the DVD in my opinion. They were hilarious, and they gave insight into the humor of the actors. Sometimes, the moments became even bigger than the real scene, depending on the actor or the situation.

Bloopers are just a way to show that someone made a mistake, and they are hilarious. Yet when we make a mistake in our careers, we are so hard on ourselves. It doesn't make sense. Bloopers are a way to learn, they're a way to be humble about what you're doing, and they are simply a way to pause and do the scene over.

When you think about it, our careers have bloopers too.

The presentations that didn't land. The meetings where we said the wrong thing. The deals that slipped through our hands. The jobs we took that weren't the right fit. Those are all outtakes, moments that never made it into the highlight reel, but they still tell the story.

Somewhere along the way, though, we stopped treating those moments like learning opportunities and started treating them like failures that define us. We replay them in our heads, dissect every word, and carry them forward as evidence of why we're not good enough.

What's wild is that if someone recorded your career like a movie, your bloopers would probably be the parts people loved the most. The times you tripped over your words before nailing the pitch. The first interview that went horribly wrong before you landed the right job. The early leadership mistakes that eventually shaped how you show up today. Those moments, awkward as they felt at the time, are the ones that make you real. They show growth. They show you were trying.

Perfection might make for a polished highlight reel, but it doesn't build connection. People don't relate to perfection. They relate to being human. Think about your favorite actors — it's not the flawless take that makes them memorable, it's how they handle the slip-ups. The ability to laugh, reset, and do it again without shame. The same applies to you.

Some of the best lessons you'll ever learn come from the takes that didn't make it into the final cut. Every single one of those moments forces reflection, adaptation, and humility. They make you sharper, more grounded, and more self-aware if you're willing to view them that way. You can either let your bloopers embarrass you, or you can let them educate you.

So maybe it's time to start building your own behind-the-scenes reel. One where you stop cutting out the parts that didn't go perfectly and start embracing the fact that they're part of the story. The next time something doesn't go the way you planned, just remind yourself: this is the outtake. You get to reset, laugh, and try again. Because when you look back one day, those imperfect moments might end up being your favorite scenes.