I Fail When...

I was rummaging through some notes yesterday and found a list that I had made before sitting on a panel a few years ago. It was entitled “Worst Failures” and it included many things that I have done wrong in business and in life.

Although the list represented many “wasted” hours, a boatload of frustration, and some lost money too, I looked at it with fresh eyes to see what I could learn. Were there any similarities? And, most importantly, why did these efforts fail?

Before long I came up with another list, entitled “I Fail When…”


Here goes…

I Fail When:


1. I force myself to do things outside my interest zone, usually because they are things I think I “should” do


2. I am working towards someone else’s goals or desired outcomes instead of my own


3. I rely too much on generalists, people who claim to be good at too many things, instead of seeking specific, well-honed expertise


4. I let my enthusiasm get the best of me and take on too much at once instead of focusing on what’s IMPORTANT


5. Accept work that I can do instead of love to do


6. I’m not honest, even when it’s uncomfortable


7. I don’t honor my “how I work best list”


8. Try to be too many things for too many people


9. Don’t listen to my instincts about who is “good people” and who is not


10. Make decisions that are nice instead of smart


Now I know as well as anyone that experiments are really important in business AND Life AND that they often result in failure. That makes failure a healthy part of both. So I don’t expect to stop failing, and I certainly don’t want to stop experimenting…I just don’t want to make the same mistakes over and over.

Hopefully this list will help keep me on track…maybe I’ll even put it on my office wall.

Roland N. Gilbert