You will never be the perfect entrepreneur. No matter how hard you work to avoid catastrophes… at some point, disasters will happen. At times, you will look bad, and your reputation will be injured. But, that doesn’t mean you or your company have to suffer long-term repercussions because of it.

Here are some steps for embracing your own humanity, and turning “bad” situations into incredible, marketing situations.

Step 1: Laugh at yourself and your mistakes. (Getting upset about the situation won’t fix things. Look at this as an opportunity instead.)

Step 2: Fix the disaster, tenaciously.

Step 3: Offer the injured customers or prospects even more than they expect. (If done properly, these individuals may become your biggest fans.)

Step 4: Use the situation to fix your current systems. (Making a mistake is alright. Repeating that mistake can be devastating.)

Step 5: Freely share these experiences in marketing messages, blogs, webinars, or as a “reason” to have another sale or promotion.

People are generally more forgiving than they seem. If you are willing to “expose” your weaknesses, your contacts will feel your honesty and sincerity. The harder you try to be the “perfect” small business owner (and hide your errors), the more detached from your contacts you become. And, the more likely they are to mistrust you.

Enjoy your imperfections and learn to use them to your advantage!

Clate Mask is the CEO of Infusionsoft.