 October 8, 2018
Do You Know How to Fail Here So You Don’t Fail There?
In the new movie about Neil Armstrong, the first man to walk on the moon, First Man, Armstrong admonishes his crew that: “We need to fail. We need to fail down here so we don’t fail up there.”
The moon team is having equipment problems, everyone is scrambling to make the launch deadline and fretting that the rocket is not going to work. Armstrong calms them down by assuring them that failure is actually a good thing.
“The point is to fail now,
when you are experimenting,
instead of later when the stakes may be higher.”
The point is to fail now, when you are experimenting, instead of later when the stakes may be higher. If, for example, you are hiring a new assistant, can you devise a exercise that will test what an actual hour or two of his or her day would involve? Incoming emails, phone interruptions, competing projects and the like can be simulated to mimic a real slice of a day. You may think that the potential hire has a great personality and would be a perfect “fit” but if he fails the test, that will tell you more than your gut check (which is how most leaders hire). You may not be planning a moon launch but there is wisdom in Armstrong’s suggestion.
What Should You Do?
1) Create simulations and test exercises before hiring, big presentations, and new client “pitches.”
2) Be willing to experiment. Don’t get attached to one solution to a problem. Allow your people to brainstorm and fail with test projects.
3) A Silicon Valley mantra is “fail fast”. Don’t berate your crew for failures, ask what they learned from their mistakes.
4) We always require people to actually practice skills during our workshops. They moan and groan but we remind them that it is better to make a mistake in class than with an actual difficult employee conversation.
What Do You Think?
Have you learned from failures? Do you have ways of creating tests and allowing failures before launching a big project?
 Did You Know
As a part of our management leadership classes, we require people to practice failing, as well as discussing what we can learn from mistakes.
Call or write us at: 303-216-1020 or
Learn more about our training offerings and check out our team members at:
 Also, I will be speaking at the Association of Workplace Investigators in San Francisco, October 13. I would love to see you there.
Be sure to read Lynne’s book: The Power of a Good Fight and learn to embrace conflict to drive productivity, creativity and innovation.
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