Lead a vivid life that does good

Tag: Failure

Could you fail 39 times?

Would you give up on the 39th AttemptI learnt recently that WD-40 stands for “Water Displacement 40”. The 40 means it was his 40th attempt at developing the product.

The  inventor Norm Larsen had tried 39 times to find a way to displace water to stop rusting in the aerospace industry.

When he finally succeeded on his 40th attempt he created a product that has far more uses that just the problem he was seeking to solve.

WD-40 would not exist if he & his team of three had given up on their 31st attempt.

I love that each time I use this product, the name itself, will be a reminder that sometimes failure upon failure is needed before success can occur.

Re-framing Failure

What have you learnt from the gift of failure this week

“I hate the word failure and wish it never existed,” I stated as strongly as I could as we reflected on some past experiences.

I shared that the problem with failure is its opposite seems to be pass.

The problem with pass is it has a strong mental connection to school or uni, where you pass or fail.

If you didn’t pass.

You failed.

You were a failure.

Nowadays, particularly in start-ups, ‘failing often’ or ‘failing fast’ is seen as a badge of honour. Because you can learn so much from failure.

Which is why I love how schools are trying their hardest to re-frame the word failure.

My friend who I was sharing all this with said that each Friday, his daughter is asked at her primary school, “What have you learnt from the gift of failure this week?”

Isn’t that a great question! Take another look.

What have you learnt from the gift of failure this week?

I realised in that conversation that I need to intentionally re-frame the word ‘failure’. To stop hating on it.

It should no longer be linked to pass or fail. Rather it should be linked to all the successes I have had as a result of learning from my failure.

Failure can be a gift.

If you learn from it.

 

What have you learnt from the gift of failure this week?

[pause]

[reflect]

Have you learnt anything?

Because if you haven’t, maybe your stuck in your comfort zone again.

Shame and failure

Seth Godin Failure“Failure’s not fun. But failure is required. Failure in the service of learning, of experimenting, of making things – this is essential.

When you’re learning to walk, no one criticizes you when you fall down. Parents understand that you do it wrong and then you do it right.

But that’s about the last time you get that benefit. After that, we shame you when you fail.

We shame you as a way of gaining compliance and obedience. We shame you for your D-, we shame you for the missed shot on goal, we shame you for what you wore to the dance.

Is it any wonder we associate failure with shame?”

Finally finished Seth Godin’s book “What to do when its your turn” over the break. The above is a shameless excerpt from it.

How often do we not try, because if we fail, we will feel ashamed?

How often do we make people feel ashamed, for trying and failing?

Often ‘Being the Best’ first requires failure

Audit ReportRecently, one of our business divisions was audited by an external auditor, and the comment was made that a particular process is the best that she’s seen in the industry. The irony is that these processes came about because we failed, and by that I mean failed significantly, three or four years ago.

This got me thinking about what it takes to be the best, and whether being the best, at some point, requires massive failure.

Is it possible that failure causes us to reflect, to learn, to change? Is it possible that failure causes us to radically change things so that you can actually strive to become the best?

Being the best is not just a decision you make when things are going well, being the best is something that is refined through the dark patches, risks taken and failed, and through lessons learned the hard way.

What will you do to be the best?

Is that the challenge at work, or failure, or relationship issue, that you’re going through right now could actually hold the key to being the best?

Maybe it’s time you took some massive steps to change.

Then quite possibly, in the future, someone will notice that you are the best!

Why you should believe in failures like me.

School Report Tauranga Boy CollegeI failed at school.

The best mark I received was an internally assessed A1 in School Cert science. It belonged to another student called Andrew Nichol and was whisked away as quickly as it arrived.

I left school at 17 barely able to read, average at the more complex forms of maths, but strangely very good at accounting. Despite being a “failure”, I have discovered I am actually not as dumb as the school system lead me to believe. In my adult years I taught myself to read (by reading more and more books I actually enjoy).

I have also been given incredible opportunities to lead.

To learn.

To succeed.

Why?

Because throughout my life, many incredibly courageous people have believed in me despite my failures. They were courageous because I could have crashed, failed again and tarnished their good name.

I would not be who I am today without their generosity.

All of us have people who’ve believed in us against the odds. Therefore the implication is simple.

Who are we investing our time into, who might just succeed if we just see past their failure?

Who are you believing in against the odds?

Maybe its time you found someone.


Finally a shout out to just a few of the names I have randomly thought of as I wrote this post. Mum & Dad, Craig Jamieson, Dale Henderson, Bob Addison, Matt Ruys , Neville Stevenson, Ian Hogan, Colin Shotter, Dave Medhurst, Geoff LeCren, Glyn Gray, Jeff Smith, Bruce Thomson, Mark Thompson, Iain Hill, Jim Quinn,, Rowland Forman, Ken Frost, Campbell Forlong, Jim Grafas and of course Karina Nicol. Thank you for believing in me at various stages in my life. I am more grateful than words can express.