Failure is an “act that does not achieve success”.  So to ask “how does failure breed success?”, we must first define success.

Success is “the act of achieving a desired or planned outcome”.  This definition makes no reference to an absence of failure. In other words, success and failure can co-exist.

Pairs of muscles in the human body work antagonistically. One pushes and the other pulls. For instance, the biceps and triceps are a pair of muscles that work antagonistically for the common good of the arm – allowing it to bend and straighten.  The arm cannot function without the presence of both.

In a similar way, success and failure work antagonistically for the common good of the project, task, or whatever.

They say that success is a journey not a destination.

But surely failure is the journey, success the destination.

You can’t reach the destination without the journey.

Why then don’t we value failure?  Its negative connotations stand alogside the likes of “cancer”, “obesity”, “poll tax”, “Gordon Brown”.  All would claim to be misunderstood.

Failure comes in three flavours:
1. not getting off your backside and participating at all
2. getting off the ride before achieving the desired outcome
3. participating in intellingent acts of trial and error to ultimately achieve success.

Let’s assume that you’re not having a problem with no. 1.

No. 2 is characterised by a business culture where a fear of failure paralyses our ability to act.

But failing provides us with the roadmap to success. An intrapreneur who has embraced failure has attained a mass of knowledge far in excess of one who has not.  We need to create a business culture where failure is valued for the lessons it provides, where staff are encouraged to push the boundaries without fear of reprisal, in other words no. 3.

So, how does failure breed success? Well…..

If you never fail, you’re not pushing the boundaries hard enough.

A word of caution here before you rush out headlong looking to make your first major howler free from fear or guilt.  To fail successfully needs an element of intelligence.  Promoting a catastrophic failure of your business for instance would certainly teach you many lessons but you’d have nothing left to play with.  Similarly, to make the same mistake twice would be a bit dim.

The answer is to paint a clear picture to your staff of what failure looks like as part of a process towards success. Engender a business culture of empowerment, energy, a willingness to push the boundaries, a passion to succeed, an absence of blame and retribution. If your staff don’t get it, then chances are you have got the wrong staff.

If on the other hand the whole concept is making you feel a little light headed, don’t forget that there is one surefire way to avoid failure.

Stop asking yourself how does failure breed success and……

………..do nothing.

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