Change your words. Change your world.

Jodi Orgill Brown

From Oops to Opportunity: How EWTS Turned a Big Mistake Into a Big Win

We’ve all had moments at work when time freezes and we have to live in the mess we created. Mine came the day we mailed our organization’s newsletter—complete with a list of donor names—to our entire community. I produced the piece and was proud of it—until I got a call pointing out what I had missed: the name of our largest donor was left off.

Cue the panic. And the ache in the pit of my stomach.

This donor’s information was handled separately and didn’t live in our primary database. It was an honest mistake, but the kind that can damage trust and credibility. My instinct was to go on the defensive, but I paused—and leaned into two of the most powerful tools I’ve ever learned: curiosity and creativity.

The Power of “Help Me Understand…”

Instead of rushing to explain or excuse, I asked a trusted colleague: “Help me understand how we got here—what steps led to this miss?”

This phrase, one of Phil M. Jones’ “magic words,” helped open a judgment-free dialogue. It allowed us to assess the situation calmly and collaboratively, rather than placing blame.

And what we found out what was we ALL missed the mistake. The entire team proofed the newsletter before going to print, and even the Executive Director didn’t catch it until afterwards.

We realized the problem was in keeping our primary donor separate from our “regular” donor database.

Turning Panic into Possibility: “Could it be possible…?”

When we understood what happened, and HOW it happened, we were able to move into problem-solving mode. We had a choice: apologize quietly, or make it right loudly. That’s when another phrase came to mind: “Could it be possible to turn this into something positive?”

What followed was a bold, creative pivot—we produced a special-edition “Thank You” newsletter focused entirely on our primary donor’s impact. We shared their story, their generosity, and how their support had transformed lives. And we sent it to the entire constituency.

It wasn’t just a fix—it was a celebration. And the BIG donor loved it.

The Lesson: Resilience Isn’t Reaction—It’s Preparation

One of the cornerstone beliefs in Exactly What to Say is: “The worst time to think about what you’re going to say is in the moment you’re saying it.”

I’ve learned that resilience is built in those moments before the panic. It’s having a toolkit of language, mindset, and intention ready—not to control everything, but to navigate anything.

And antifragility, the ability to become better from mistakes, well nothing forces you to change a bad system faster than making a big mistake. Our entire team became better, from improved systems, and improved teamwork.

“Most people in your situation would…”

Most people in this situation would have panicked, downplayed, or tried to bury the mistake. But by asking better questions and choosing better words, we didn’t just recover—we deepened trust, expanded our story, and elevated our donor’s experience.

In the end, that mistake might have been one of the best things to happen.

Jodi Orgill Brown

Creating communities in the workplace has never been more important. Jodi is the master of helping teams to find the glue that sticks them together and the fuel that empowers them to achieve more through creating an anti-fragile outlook for all.