Failure - Stepping Stone to Success

Do you really think that your chips are down in the luck department? There is no need to despair, as there is hope. You might still be moving towards better times. And, you can still dare to dream….

It helps to look at the positive side of failure. A view that we can find in the book “The Road to Success Is Paved With Failure” by Joey Green, where we come face-to-face with an encouraging look at failure.

It focuses on how the youth need to be taught that failure is often the first step toward ultimate success. Failure is painful, but it can be constructive. Those who fail to open themselves to learning and growth.

It highlights the experiences of:

• Marilyn Monroe, in 1947, after one year under contract, was dropped by 20th Century-Fox because Darryl Zanuck thought she was ‘unattractive’!
• John Grisham, whose first novel, A Time to Kill, was rejected by sixteen agents and a dozen publishing houses!
• Walt Disney, whose first cartoon production company went bankrupt!
• Barbra Streisand, who made her stage debut at age 19 in a show that opened and closed in a single night!

In the above examples, you can trace the fact-filled, star-studded celebration of failure, which, in fact, can be seen as a necessary stepping stone on the road to success.

Take, for instance, Abraham Lincoln. Although he is rated as one of the best American Presidents, it is often pointed out that he had to encounter a number of failures in his career, until he was suddenly elected as President in 1860. This shows that even a failure can become President if he doesn't give up.

How did Lincoln cope with these episodes of failure? What kept him going?

The quality that enabled him to cope with failure was his ‘ability to learn from it’. He turned to logic and intuition, corrected what he could and moved on. Above all, he was a ‘lifelong learner’. From that essential element came the capacity to endure.

From the Lincoln story, one could argue that his greatness may have grown from the tribulations he faced. His response to the losses, defeats, and rejection that he faced before being President very much shaped the cool, level-headed character that he displayed in the face of the Confederate rebellion.

Losses, defeats, and rejection will keep happening to the best of us. What really counts is how we respond to them. For the believer, every failure can be a stepping stone to success. Failure is an ugly word. No one likes it.

The most successful men and women in history have experienced failure. Why do some who fail at first go on to succeed while others do not? Those who eventually succeed are the ones who understand the difference between temporary defeat and failure. They look beyond life's occasional setbacks and refuse to be completely undone by the obstacles that confront them.

How to Avoid Failure?

How do you handle failure? What do you do when you encounter rejection? These questions are fundamental in business as well as in every aspect of life. They are also questions that we would rather not deal with even though we will certainly have to at one time or another. 

We would have read many a story at school, that painted a vivid picture of both success and failure. If you’d remember, one such story would have featured two men who built a house - one on a foundation of rock, the other on sand. When the inevitable storm hits out, one house stood firm and the other fell like a pack of cards. In this simple parable, we find two principles that can protect us from lasting failure in our personal, family, business and spiritual lives.

First, always build upon the strong foundation of truth. Second, build for the storms, which are inevitable.

Why Do We Fail?

The causes of some failures are not quite as clear as others. When we have given our best, why do we experience failure?

Remember, there is a difference between ‘failing’ and ‘being a failure’.

‘Failure’ is a phenomenon that has not left anybody untouched. Any result, which does not match the expected outcome is termed as a failure. For example, a student scores 95% against expectations of 98% marks in CBSE Class 12 examination;  and because of higher cut-offs,  he finds that he cannot get admission into a medical college. This can be termed technically, as a ‘failure’.
In the corporate world, some examples of failure could be:

1. Failure in meeting customer expectations. 
2. Failure in meeting the expected projected turnover and profits.
3. Failure of a product in the market for not being able to meet the expected sales.

Failure is Temporary

Thus, failure is a relative term and always measured against a target expectation. One should derive solace that it is possible to convert any type of failure into success. And remember, like the failure, success is also relative.

Life is full of uncertainties and failures are inevitable. But there is a way out. You can overcome failure, by conscious effort.

Strategies to Overcome Failure

One can observe that great leaders always challenge uncertainty.  They take ‘risks’ which sometimes may result in failures. It is this quality of leaders and character of the enterprise - to fight back, learn lessons and quickly take steps to overcome failures, which result in great ‘success stories’.

• Failure is a Temporary Setback: Failures bring some kind of setback in terms of time loss, opportunity loss, prestige loss, revenue loss and so on.  The ability to recover depends upon the extent and nature of setback. One thing is certain - it is possible to make a comeback in most of the cases. In short, failures are temporary, always leave some chance to fight back and this ability is known as ‘resilience’. 
• Accept the Failures and Start Working on them: Do not waste time on accepting failures. It may be a perceived failure but should not be ignored. Many times, we try to camouflage the failure. But, that is only saving the skin for the time being. What helps is the immediate acceptance of failure and then planning a strategy to overcome it. Time is too critical a factor while tackling failure and hence, should be treated with a lot of sensitivity. 
• Objective Approach: Failures are not the end of the world; they provide an opportunity to learn and make further improvements. Only those people who take initiatives and decisions, take the risk of failing and such people are respected. Sometimes, they may go wrong but good leaders always go up. Accepting responsibility builds credibility and acceptability in the team. In crucial times, blame game does not help but the whole focus should be on solving the problem which builds great team spirit to overcome any problem. 
• Do not Panic, rather Collect Objective Data: Failures sometimes bring a very adverse response from the customer and from within the organization. The usual reaction is of panic and haste. However, the best way is to collect objective data which will quantify and classify the failure in a measurable way. By doing so, corrective actions can be taken and improvements measured. 
• React with Speed, Communicate and Work with other’s Support: It is important to show the speed of response is fast and this can be done by communicating the people affected with the failure that the failure is not ignored and being attacked by a team consisting of people relevant to the failure. 
• Identity Process and Set Target: Do not attack the failure in an unplanned manner. Rather set a well-defined process for attacking the failure. The targets must be SMART (Specific, Measurable, Ambitious, Realistic, Time-bound). 
• Analyse Failure and Determine Cause: It is important to understand the mode and the cause of failure. The failure mode will validate the failure area and it needs to be analyzed in details to find out the exact cause. Finding the root cause is crucial as further actions are based on it. It is important to avoid any repeat failures which may be costly but also damaging to the credibility of the individual or the organization.
• Decide and take Corrective Action: After the determination of the root cause, one has to decide about the corrective action and after that,t it must be implemented immediately. 
• Review, Assess and Verify Results: It is critical that the decided corrective action is correct and final otherwise the management and the customer will lose faith. It is vital to review, assess and verify the effects of modification which can be seen through a limited exercise or simulated results. 
• Standardize Solution and Learning: Once the failure is overcome, make sure that the gains do not slip away; ensure that controls are regularized, measures standardized along with the learnings so that similar failures do not recur.

Now, you can go all out to reach out for success, for who knows – the sky’s the limit!

Professor, Delhi School of Communication