What’s the difference between God
and an entrepreneur? God doesn’t think
He’s an entrepreneur.
Occasionally, many of us act as if
we have divine powers. We work hard to
meet a customer’s needs. We do things we
know will satisfy those needs. We
deliver, evaluate, and discover we failed.
When we make a great enough commitment, our “divine inner self”
sometimes refuses to accept failure.
The next time you take your work
too seriously and feel overwhelmed by mistakes or failure, use this simple
checklist to do a “reality check”. It is
based in part on an article entitled, “So You Fail. Now Bounce Back!” by Patricia Sellers in the
May 1995 issue of Fortune magazine.
Read each statement and mark those you agree with.
_
I am trying to control an environment I have no
right to control.
_
I am being inflexible and trying to make the
world conform to me.
_
I am unwilling to bounce back, content to be
stuck in the tar pit of failure.
_
I see failure as permanent, not temporarily
related to specific circumstances.
_
I see my failure is enduring, total, and my
fault. I cannot see past today.
_
I cannot look in the mirror and say, “I did my
best.”
_
I am being intolerant of my mistakes.
_
I see failure negatively, not positively as
showing a willingness to take risks.
_
I am spending time lingering on the idea of
failure.
Now count the number of marks and
use the following scale to determine how you scored.
0-3. You are probably well grounded in
reality. Although the project or
activity may not have been a total success, you know there have been successful projects in the past and there
will be others in the future.
4-6. You may be losing contact with this
world. Step outside and gaze out across
a sea or field. Look up at a forest
canopy. Reach down and clutch a handful
of earth. Then go to work and forget
reigning over the earth and seas.
7-9. You are a reincarnation of a god from Greek
mythology or you may be in serious need of help. If the former, I would like to meet you. If the latter, you may want to consider
seeking professional counseling and a new career.
By the time you fill this out I hope you will see the irony
of your situation, chuckle, and move on.
After all, our lives are a succession of successes and failures. Society may tell us failure is a bad but in
reality, failure is a good thing.
Failure shows we are risk takers, a trait common among successful
people. Failure provides a contrast to
success and a basis for learning.
Failure can only survive when we give up and live in it. Failure is a vital thing. Learn to live with it.
What some famous people had to say about failure
Don't
play God. You can't always control your
environment.
Bernie Marcus, Home Depot.
"The
people who bounce back are optimists who believe 'My problem is temporary,
related to the particular situation I'm in, and not my fault. ' Pessimists, who generally don't come back ,
see failure as a permanent, pervasive, and their fault." Martin Seligman, Univ. of Pa.
Can
you look in the mirror and say, “I did my best.” If you can, no matter what the outcome,
that's success." Rick Miller, CFO, AT&T.
"...the
most successful (executives) seem unacquainted with the concept of
failure." Warren Bennis.
"We
become uncompetitive by not being tolerant of mistakes"
Roberto Goizuet, Coca-Cola.
Hire
people who have made mistakes. "It shows that they take risks."
Bill Gates.
Failure is a vital thing. Learn to live with it.
