When It Is Okay To Fail
It is okay to fail when you have given it your very best effort, when you have played the game to win.
It is okay to fail when you have given it all you’ve got, leaving nothing in reserve. It is okay to fail when you have spent yourself in the effort.
It is okay to fail when you have gone way beyond what is expected of you.
It is okay to fail when you take the long shot gamble.
It is okay to fail when you try something new, something for which you have no experience or background.
It is okay to fail after you have gone the extra mile.
It is okay to fail when failing doesn’t mean quitting, when it doesn’t mean you stop trying.
When It Is Not Okay to Fail
It is not okay to fail when you haven’t given your best effort. You may fail here, but this is not an honorable failure.
It is not okay to fail when you have something left to give, when you keep something in reserve, when you save yourself. You may fail here, but this failure is not acceptable when spending yourself may have meant a different outcome.
It isn’t okay to fail when you haven’t prepared yourself for the game, when you haven’t done your homework. You may fail here, but lack of preparedness is not an acceptable reason to fail.
It isn’t okay to fail because you have ignored the fundamentals. And it isn’t okay to fail because you haven’t ignored the fundamentals enough. Sometimes succeeding is built on the fundamentals, and sometimes it is built on overcoming the fundamentals. It isn’t okay to fail when you haven’t taken the safe shot, and isn’t okay to fail when you haven’t taken the inconceivable long shot.
It isn’t okay to fail when you have only tried to meet the status quo. It isn’t okay to fail because you have simply done what everyone else is doing. It isn’t okay to fail when you have only done what is expected. Conformity is sure path to failure and to mediocrity.
It isn’t okay to fail because you were focused on some big idea and you have ignored the details that make up the execution of that idea. Success is in the idea and in its execution.
It isn’t okay to fail when you haven’t used every resource to win. It isn’t okay to fail because you didn’t ask others for the help that would have made the difference.
It isn’t okay to fail if you don’t learn something from the failure.
It isn’t okay to fail because you quit trying. It isn’t okay to fail because you quit when the road got rough and the effort seemed too much.
It is never okay to fail when there is still time on the clock.
It is never okay to fail to get back up.
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The path to brilliance is paved with failure. Failing forward (When it’s OK to fail) is the below the surface, that no one sees, requirement for innovation. Thanks for the post.
Thank for the comments, Jim! When the authority on personal brilliance tells you that is okay to fail in order to be innovative and brilliant, then you have all of the confirmation you need. Fail Forward, indeed!
I wear a t-shirt that says, “Scars are tattoos with better stories.” I’ve got scars on my body and resume that certainly prove that saying.
When I’ve been in the hiring seat, I looked for the applicant to tell a story of when they failed and what they learned – and how they followed that with success. That’s the type of person I want to work with.
Randy:
T-Shirt: Brilliant!
Hiring question: More brilliant still!
Adding both to my repertoire today.
Anthony
“Never give in, never give in, never; never; never; never – in nothing, great or small, large or petty – never give in except to convictions of honor and good sense” – Sir Winston Churchill
Well done.
It’s never OK to fail to try!
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