Welcome to my book about how to apologise with humility, sincerity and integrity throughout the chapters of your WorkLife Story. Here is a preview of what’s inside, along with the main ideas and the meaning behind these.

WorkLife is our life at work, where we spend one third of our lives. It is also the impact our work has on our life outside of work, and the impact our life outside of work has on our work. All areas of our life in and out of work are so intrinsically linked, they cannot be separated, nor do I believe should they. I believe WorkLife needs to be considered holistically.

A sincere apology requires you to demonstrate how your actions caused hurt or pain to another person. We can all do or say things that we later come to regret – an in-the-moment reaction that can leave us and other people feeling anywhere from slightly uncomfortable to totally destroyed. What we do next to be able to move forward will determine how the story ends.

In this book I tell three stories:

1. 
   

   A Monkey Could Do It Better – A Woulda, Shoulda, Coulda, Wish I Hadn’t Said ... Story: Ray’s Story of how in taking full responsibility for his actions, he had to demonstrate his commitment, beyond his apology.

   
   


2. 
   

   A Bad Interview Quickly Followed by a Bad Apology: Caroline’s story of a demoralising interview which was followed by a non-apology.

   
   


3. 
   

   A Sincere Apology is Needed to Put Things Right When She Made a Huge Mistake: Jacinta’s story of how when she recognised she had abused her power as manager, she needed to swallow her pride and do whatever it took to put things right.

   
   

I share the exercises that helped to work through these challenging situations to resolve the dilemmas. I present these exercises as the following assignments for you to work through:

I Wish I Hadn’t Said... Assignment

This assignment is to help you to take responsibility for mistakes, to act with humility, sincerity and integrity.

Develop a Practice of Continuous Self-Feedback Assignment

This assignment is to help you to practice regular self-analysis by tapping into your gut instinct, to acknowledge and observe your thoughts and behaviours in difficult situations.

Develop a Practice of Insightful and Effective Self-Questioning Assignment

This assignment is to help you to consider the reality of situations.

The Four Components of a Good Apology Assignment

This assignment is to help you to avoid lasting damage to your relationships and reputation by restoring the respect and integrity of everyone involved.

Six Steps to Preparing a Sincere Apology Assignment

This assignment is to help you to own the mistake you made, to make an apology that comes from a place of truth.