There's only one way to apologize when you're wrong, and understand this; admitting an error and apologizing for it take courage. It's not a sign of weakness, as many business leaders have argued, but rather, a sign of enduring strength. It inspires the loyalty of your people when they see that the buck really does stop with you. It's also probably one of the hardest, most uncomfortable things you'll ever have to do, but get used to it. You might be the smartest guy (or gal) in the room, but statistics will have their way, and you will be wrong. It's inevitable. When you are, don't shirk your responsibilities. You're a leader - act the part. Here's what to do.

Do It In Person

Never apologize on a voice mail or via email or text message. You want to do it face to face, in person, looking your employees in the eye. Yes, that's going to make it even more uncomfortable for you because you can't hide behind technology. That's rather the point of the exercise. It's you, in front of the troops, owning up to a mistake. This, and every time that follows.

Do It In Public

If it's a mistake involving your interactions with a single person, obviously that's most appropriately handled with that individual, but if it's' a mistake that involves the whole of the company, don't do that individually. Get everybody together and fess up. .

No Excuses

Queen Victoria of Great Britain once said, “Never complain, never explain.” Those are wise words. When you make the apology, there can't be any excuses or equivocations. There's none of this, “I understand you may feel that I was wrong,” business. You were wrong, period. Their feelings don't have anything to do with it. Lead your people by example. When they see that the buck stops with you, they're more likely to make their own hard calls because they're following the example you're setting. Make sure it's a good example, because they'll take their cues from you.

Do It With Sincerity and Humility

An apology that is neither sincere nor humble isn't actually an apology. It's something masquerading as an apology, and it usually has a calculated political agenda attached to it. Don't be that person. For one thing, it's blindingly obvious to everyone that you're not being sincere, and for another, it's only going to hurt your leadership. Nobody looks up to a snake. They might fear the snake, but is that what you really want?

The Fix

No apology can be complete without an action plan at the end. A way forward. “Guys, I messed up. I did this, when clearly I should have done that. It caused a lot of stress and strife in the company, and I'm so sorry for that. I should have listened to you when you said X, and starting right now, here's what we're going to do to fix that.”

Then tell them explicitly what the fix is. Of course, in order to really seal the deal, you actually have to deliver on the fix. You actually have to do the things you say you'll do, or it will be taken as an act of insincerity and you'll lose the respect of your people, which will make leading them that much more difficult in the future.

A great apology is one of the hallmarks of a great business leader.