Strategies for Learning from Failure
Most people believe that failure is bad but as I have gotten older I have learned that failure is not the opposite of success but part of it.
This article said that mistakes fall into three broad categories: preventable, complexity-related, and intelligent.
Preventable are failures in routine or predictable operations, which can be prevented.
Complexity-related are those in complex operations, which can’t be avoided but can be managed so that they don’t mushroom into catastrophes.
Intelligent are the unwanted outcomes in, for example, research settings, which are valuable because they generate knowledge.
Leaders can create and reinforce a culture that counteracts the blame game and makes people feel both comfortable with and responsible for surfacing and learning from failures. They can make sure that people know that a mistake will not mean they are fired. Leaders and employees can both learn from a mistake and make things work better.
I liked this paragraph, “Once a failure has been detected, it’s essential to go beyond the obvious and superficial reasons for it to understand the root causes. This requires the discipline—better yet, the enthusiasm—to use sophisticated analysis to ensure that the right lessons are learned and the right remedies are employed. The job of leaders is to see that their organizations don’t just move on after a failure but stop to dig in and discover the wisdom contained in it.”
Great Expectations by Thomas S. Monson
You have great expectations—not as the result of an unknown benefactor, but as the result of a known benefactor—even our Heavenly Father—and great things are expected of you.
“The race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong” (Ecclesiastes 9:11); it is to him who endures to the end.
“When the time for decision arrives, the time for preparation is past.”
The Lord tells us in the Doctrine and Covenants that during the first eight years of our lives, power is not given unto Satan to tempt us as little children (see D&C 29:46–47). We had an eight-year head start on Lucifer.
In the following paragraph, I changed some words that would apply to myself. “You might ask, “Why is President Monson emphasizing this? Our first eight-year period of learning is long past.” But you, my brothers and sisters, are going to be grandparents one day, and you will want to emphasize the importance to your grand-children and to your future generations of descendants of that first eight-year period.”
I wasn’t great with my kids but I can help with my grandchildren to learn the gospel and to know how important it is to learn about Heavenly Father and what He wants them to do.
“Life is a sea upon which the proud are humbled, the shirker is exposed, and the leader is revealed. To sail it safely and reach your desired port, you need to keep your charts at hand and up-to-date. You need to learn by the experience of others, to stand firm for principles, to broaden your interests, to be understanding of the rights of others to sail the same sea, and to be reliable in the discharge of your duty.”
“What is truth?” (John 18:38) And that which doth not edify is not of God, and is darkness. That which is of God is light. [D&C 50:23–24]
This is for those moments when I feel like a failure or when I think I can find happiness somewhere else. It doesn’t happen often but hopefully I can remember the words of Preside Stephen L. Richards.
If you should have doubting thoughts, remember the counsel given by President Stephen L Richards, a former counselor in the First Presidency, who declared:
Just say to those skeptical, disturbing, rebellious thoughts, “I propose to stay with my faith, with the faith of my people. I know that happiness and contentment are there and I forbid you, agnostic, doubting thoughts, to destroy the house of my faith. I acknowledge that I do not understand the processes of creation, but I accept the fact of it. I grant that I cannot explain the miracles of the Bible and I do not attempt to do so, but I accept God’s word. I wasn’t with Joseph, but I believe him. My faith did not come to me through science and I will not permit science to destroy it.”
Helpful hints which will assist you to achieve your great expectations:
First, avoid the pitfalls in the track. Avoid the detours which will deprive you of your celestial reward.
Second, beware of the flashy start and the fade-out finish.
Third, help others in their race of life.
Fourth, and finally, seek the help of the Lord. Souls are precious—your soul and my soul. Our Heavenly Father Himself has said so. Remember that we do not run alone in this great race of life; we are entitled to the help of the Lord.
Michael Jordan – I love this. What a wonderful message for everyone, especially those who love basketball and love Michael Jordan. He told about his missing shots, game losses, and winning game shots that he missed. He failed over and over and over in his life but that is why he succeeds!
Life=Risk—Motivation-
Lucille Ball, The Beatles, Ulysses S. Grant, Michael Jordan, Thomas Edison, Walt Disney, and Abraham Lincoln are all people who have had many failures in their lives, but because of those failures they became great. If you have never failed, you have never lived.
Treat Life As an Experiment
Great examples of people who failed but kept going –
Take risks frequently, and be prepared in case the resulting action fails to meet your expectations. Fail forward, and there will be learning from your mistakes along the way.
“WD” that’s obvious because it’s an oil so it does water displacement. Catchy, a name only an engineer could love. Anyhow, WD, but the “40” is what I want to talk about. “40” is because the first 39 formulas failed. They stuck with it through 39 failures.
Jim Dyson says he had 5,128 failures, 5,128 prototypes before he had something he could sell.
Pollyanna Reyes 