If I have one regret about my younger days, it’s that I made far too many excuses. I over-relied on the and understanding and forgiveness of others. Big mistake.
It’s not that people aren’t understanding or forgiving, it’s just that most people have better things to do, than be put in that position in the first place.
It’s something we all have to outgrow, or the world gets pretty unpleasant, pretty quickly.
That being said, a company culture needs to be able to forgive “smart mistakes” if they ever want be innovative. The good news is, people who make smart mistakes rarely make excuses. They just get on it with it, and ‘fess up when things go wrong.