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Is It Really Okay to Fail?
Reading:
Is It Really Okay to Fail?
Failing because you made an informed choice, took a calculated risk, or even made a bet, understanding the odds were against you… is fine.
Failing because you were sloppy, didn’t do your homework, didn’t work hard, or didn’t care is a totally different kind of failure… and isn’t fine.
It is different failing from acts of commission than failing from acts of omission.
I tell my team often to error on the side of movement. To error on the side of doing what’s right. If we are trying new things and we fail… so be it.
What drives me nuts is failing because we knew what to do and just didn’t do it. Failing when we knew the truth and didn’t tell it.
If we are going to fail… it is important to fail fearlessly… and for the right reasons.
Comment (1)
Ewan O'Leary
When a team fails through an act of omission, what does that say about the environment they work in? I posit that purpose turns work into value, and without that, many failure of omission occur. You can create the container for errors where learning can occur by investing the team in a resonant purpose.