To error is human… we all know this saying. Even celebrities who are known for their success stories had their share of disappointments earlier on in their careers, for example…
We are under so much pressure to succeed both personally and professionally that, for fear of disappointment, many people prefer to take no risks to avoid any potential failure. But in the business context, most of the time, experimenting and embracing failure’s lessons are needed to achieve success.
“I’ve missed more than 9,000 shots in my career. I’ve lost almost 300 games. 26 times, I’ve been trusted to take the game-winning shot and missed. I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.” Michael Jordan
Michael Jordan couldn’t have said it better. Accept your failure and discern the reasons in order to improve. So, why Québec companies find it so difficult to see mistakes in a positive way? Missing your target numbers could be spun off into better performance later.
A step ahead, the U.S. saw the launch of events like FuckUp Nights and Fail Camps that give entrepreneurs a platform where stories of failed businesses and projects can be shared, studied and embraced – all with the goal to learn from their mistakes. This movement is also starting to catch up across the Atlantic (FailCons, Conférence du rebond) to help lift the stigma of failure and replace it with freedom, confidence and support, but above all, to share tips and tricks to prevent similar mistakes in the future. It requires a healthy dose of humility from entrepreneurs, but they understand how constructive it could be.
Success and failure should be both viewed as results, one is positive and the other one is negative. They are both consequences of a process or a procedure and can become a learning experience. Hungering for success or fearing failure is of little use. The key is to reinforce a culture that counteracts the blame game, supports employees and prepares grounds for their success by gradually reframing our perceptions of success and failures and transitioning towards a work environment that encourages people to try as hard as possible, and by ensuring that the corporate culture embraces the right to make mistakes.
To optimize transition from failure to success, your organization could implement strategic or operational mechanisms that would 1) help its employees to effectively deal with issues they face, 2) encourage its employees to overcome their fear of failure, and 3) make sure that hits as well as misses become a learning experience for everyone in order to avoid repeating the same mistakes, promote initiative and cultivate successful efforts within the company.
Depending on your business expectations and corporate culture, there are several possible solutions, such as:
These initiatives can be only useful if they are supported by:
Nowadays, mentality is changing, mistakes become accepted. Yet companies must find ways to boost initiative and to give confidence to their employees.
Businesses can:
To sum it up, learning from failure on a business scale is like playing chess: accept risks, build a strategy and anticipate your opponent’s moves. But it also means acknowledging the possibility that you may lose. Remember, everyone may fail, so do your utmost best to avoid disappointments.
Empower your employees to succeed. It means let them try and test their abilities, gradually building up their confidence to take on more complex tasks. It also means support and assist them throughout various challenges, helping them deal with issues effectively and efficiently. Encourage them and celebrate their successes. Finally, if you still think: “I’m lucky, my staff and I make very few mistakes”, ask yourself:
If you answered yes to at least one of these questions, our Totem team can help you to develop and implement strategic and operational practices to boost the efficiency of your business.
Sylvie Grégoire, MBA, CRHA
President, Totem Performance organisationnelle
