Make mistakes at full speed!

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When my kids were young and all at home (seven of 'em!) we were up to our ears in sports. I did the laundry in those days and I can't tell you how many pairs of sweat socks I bleached & washed! One winter, our oldest son played college basketball in a neighboring state, our 2nd son played varsity boys' high school basketball, our 2nd daughter played varsity girls' basketball, and our 3rd son played basketball for his middle school. We put thousands of miles on our SUV, most of it on icy Midwestern highways!

As their father, I enjoyed every mile, every minute, and every heartache. I wouldn't trade any of those hectic days for all the tea in China. I also recognize my kids excelled in basketball in spite of the chromosomes they inherited from me! What I did try to give them was the right mental approach. The attitude I tried to pass on to them is summed up in the title of this post: "Make Mistakes At Full Speed!" If you're worried about making a mistake, you'll never play fluidly and that means you'll never excel in any sport.

I believe the same mindset needs to be fostered by leaders and passed on to their team. Give your people permission to BLOW IT while they're stretching, innovating, jumping on an opportunity! Here's what Tom Peters has to say on the subject:

Screw-ups are…THE…Mark of Excellence.

(Corollary: “Do it right the first time” is an… Obscenity.)

Richard Farson is a bum! He wrote the book I wanted to write! And got there first! With Ralph Keyes, he penned Whoever Makes the Most Mistakes Wins: The Paradox of Innovation. Also consider:

1. From premier product developer David Kelley: “Fail Faster. Succeed sooner.”
2. From a Philadelphia area high-tech executive: “Fail. Forward. Fast.”
3. From successful Aussie businessman Phil Daniels: “Reward excellent failures. Punish mediocre successes.”

Take your pick. Iʼll take ʼem all.

My resolve on this issue of the paramount importance of failure was locked into granite a dozen years ago, when I had a chance to introduce WalMart founder Sam Walton at a prestigious awards banquet. I sought out Samʼs long-time pal and successor as CEO, David Glass, and asked him what single trait of Samʼs stood out above the rest. He quickly replied, “Samʼs not afraid to fail. Itʼs not,” he continued, “that Sam tolerates less than a Herculean effort, or anything like that. To the contrary. Itʼs just that his attitude is, ʻGot that dumb one behind us. Letʼs try something else. Right now.ʼ”

Alas, such an attitude is ever so rare, in sizable enterprises in particular—which seem to spend more time on backward-looking witch hunts than forward motion…that all-important “next-quick-try.”