October 2020

I struggled with the idea of failure for a long time.  In my childhood years, in my mind, success led to validation, and failure meant that you were not going to get it.  That translation can cause you to misinterpret and forsake opportunities.

A former manager once shared this story.  He recalls skiing one weekend, and as he was going down the mountain, people were flying past him, some successfully, but many also falling here and there.  However, he wasn’t falling at all. He was going nice, slow, and steady, controlling every movement carefully.  His instructor finally said to him, “hey, you need to pick up the pace.  Sure, you will fall now and then, but you’ll never learn additional techniques and grow muscle memory if you don’t challenge yourself.”

Fail fast, fail often, fail forward. 

Take chances to explore growth and learn. 

When you observe the best teams operate, the team members complement each other in good times and, more importantly, support each other through the tough times. Tough times are inevitable, and how we show up for our teammates can make the difference.

What you do has far greater impact than what you say. – Stephen Covey

It always seems impossible until it’s done. – Nelson Mandela