Learning to Fail Forward

In this world of relentless pursuit of success, there is often a negative connotation toward failure. No one wants to fail. But failure is a reality everyone must face, including the most successful servant leaders. There is a difference between failing backward and failing forward. Learning how to fail forward teaches you to take calculated risks and also how to find the silver lining and lessons when things don’t go as well as you had hoped.

To be clear, failing forward does not mean that you are striving to fail or enjoy failing. It means that the fear of failing won't stop you from taking right-sized risks. Failing forward means you value every failure for the lessons learned and then apply those lessons in future efforts, even if those might also fail. Each learning moment moves you closer to ultimate success when you are failing forward.

So how can deServing Leaders learn to fail forward? Here are a few tips:

Prepare and plan: 

Before you start, prepare for the worst and plan for the best. Take an honest look at what failing looks like and how you would deal with that challenge. Learning to fail effectively always includes a plan to overcome a failed project's setback and dealing with potential success.

Identify potential obstacles: 

The easiest way to make failing hard is to be blindsided by failure. You must spend considerable time brainstorming the list of potential barriers to success. This list serves as a cautionary tale to stay vigilant and try to avoid any obstacles that appear.

Fail forward faster:

Not all potential obstacles need to come from your own life lessons. You can research and borrow the failings of others to fail forward.

A failure is an event, not a person: 

Leaders who persevere do not base their self-worth on their performance. When they fall short, they learn from mistakes in their judgment or behavior rather than labeling themselves as a failure.

Eliminate the blame game: 

DeServing Leaders understand that blaming others simultaneously robs themselves of learning and alienates others. 

Keep moving: 

If you want something you have never had, you must do something you have never done. Rehashing and overanalyzing sabotages concentration and eats away at self-confidence. DeServing Leaders learn to forget the negative emotions of setbacks and press forward resiliently. 

Celebrate your victories, no matter how small: 

Failing is inevitable. However, as long as you fail forward, successes are also unavoidable. It's easy to focus on the failures, so make it a habit to celebrate your successes. These little victories are the things that keep you moving forward.

Failure didn't stop Vincent Van Gogh from painting, Albert Einstein from theorizing, or Michael Jordan from playing basketball. Still, it has paralyzed countless leaders and prevented them from reaching their potential. Along the deServing leadership journey, it's easy and expected to believe that you are a failure. But despite that, you must persevere. In the face of adversity and rejection, you must hold onto self-belief and remember that failure is an event, not a person.   

DeServing Leaders must define themselves by their successes and serve those around them by teaching them the importance of failing often, failing fast and failing forward.