Latest news with #failure
Forbes
10-06-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Don't Sweep Failure Under The Rug: It May Be Keeping You From Success
Lego Secrets to Success Working this week with one of the great tech companies, we reviewed a pivotal approach to addressing failure. As we explored how to build and sustain an innovative culture, we kept talking about the dangers of sweeping failures under the rug. Most companies do it, and as a result, most companies fail to learn the truly valuable lessons that could accelerate their success. Consider the contrast trajectories of Playmobile and Lego. During the 1970s and 1980s Lego and Playmobile were of roughly comparable size. Although Lego was always slightly larger, today Lego dwarfs the size and popularity of Playmobile. One reason is Lego's attitude towards failure. In conversation with Lego's CEO, we discussed an early failure that accelerated their trajectory to the incredible Lego success of today. Lego had launched a product with a digital add-on, one of their first forays into the digital world. The product crashed and burned. Rather than blame the team who launched it or whisper in the hallway about the disaster, they sat down and did a careful, open, and positive post-mortem of what they learned from the experience. What rose to the surface proved truly transformative for Lego. The team realized that they lived in a product-based world where, if everyone does their job well, they make and ship products once. After it leaves the warehouse, they never see it or hear about it again. By contrast, in a digital world cycles are continuous. If you ship a digital product, it needs to be updated, improved, and evolved. Although this may seem obvious to digital native companies it proved vital to Lego's future success as they move into a digital future. More importantly, the process itself of purposefully trying to learn as much as possible at every juncture is the real secret to their success and the reason why today Lego is such breakout story. Although we are inclined to sweep a failure under the rug, redeeming the failure by focusing on what we learn could not only improve our current effort, but may provide the clue to breakout success we have been missing!
New York Times
10-06-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Roger Federer's commencement speech wasn't just a viral moment. It was masterful
Editor's Note: This story is a part of Peak, The Athletic's desk covering leadership, personal development and success through the lens of sports. Follow Peak here. One day last June, during a steady rain on a chilly morning in New Hampshire, Roger Federer told a story about failure. Over the course of two decades, he emerged as one of the greatest tennis players who ever lived. He played 1,526 singles matches in his career and won almost 80 percent. He hoisted 20 Grand Slam trophies, including Wimbledon a record eight times. Advertisement 'Now, I have a question for you,' Federer said, looking out across a sea of umbrellas at the commencement ceremony for Dartmouth College. 'What percentage of points do you think I won in those matches?' He paused. 'Only 54 percent,' he said. It was one of those statistics that at first seemed incorrect. Federer was one of the most dominant athletic forces of this century. That guy lost nearly half of his points? 'When you lose every second point, on average, you learn not to dwell on every shot,' he told the crowd. 'You teach yourself to think, 'OK, I double-faulted. It's only a point.' When you're playing a point, it has to be the most important thing in the world, and it is. But when it's behind you, it's behind you. This mindset is really crucial, because it frees you to fully commit to the next point and the next point after that, with intensity, clarity and focus.' By the next day, the speech was everywhere, viewed by millions. Its message struck a chord with people from all walks of life, transcending the annual inspirational platitudes that define commencement season. Originally the province of valedictorians and honors graduates, the graduation speech has long been a platform for politicians, thinkers and CEOs. But in the last two decades, another popular category has emerged: star athletes. Just this year, former Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter spoke at the University of Michigan, former NBA stars Grant Hill and Carmelo Anthony delivered addresses at their alma maters — Duke and Syracuse, respectively — and Olympic gymnast Simone Biles gave the speech at Washington University in St. Louis. The American humorist Art Buchwald once mused that a commencement speech had an afterlife of 15 minutes. If you can even remember who spoke at your graduation, you probably don't remember much of what they said. Advertisement Or, as former Lakers great Kareem Abdul-Jabbar put it at Drew University in 2016: 'Lilacs are in bloom, love is in the air, and colleges and universities invite success stories like me to stand behind fancy podiums to convince parents and graduates that your education was worth the outrageous price.' But Federer's commencement address was something different — sincere, gracious, indelible — the sporting equivalent to Steve Jobs' famed commencement address at Stanford in 2005 or David Foster Wallace's speech, 'This is Water,' at Kenyon College the same year. When I mentioned the address to a colleague last month, he responded: 'I have referenced that speech like 20 times.' Ahead of the first anniversary of Federer's speech, I set out to answer a simple question: Why did it connect? Federer summed up his motivation for speaking at Dartmouth in two words: beer pong. The actual reason was more personal; his agent Tony Godsick is a Dartmouth alum and Godsick's daughter was a member of the 2024 class. But Federer understood that nearly every commencement speech features a few local shoutouts, in this case a mention of the EBA's chicken sandwich from Lou's and the local pastime, Pong, a drinking game said to have been invented by Dartmouth students. Federer's speech, which was 3,200 words and lasted 25 minutes, was structured to share three lessons — 'tennis lessons,' as Federer explained — all of which emanated from his long career and his own recent 'graduation' from tennis. The first lesson: Effortless is a myth. For as long as Federer dominated on court, commentators had remarked upon how easy he made it look. He glided around in balletic fashion, ripping one-handed backhands. He never seemed to sweat. But there was only one way, Federer explained, to make something look that easy. Advertisement 'It's not about having a gift,' he said. 'It's about having grit.' Federer's point was embodied in the address itself. He and his team spent six months working on the speech, sifting through drafts and making revisions. His delivery was tender and rehearsed. 'As many interviews as he's done, and as much as he's been in the public eye, you could tell he practiced,' said Vinay Reddy, a former chief speech writer for President Joe Biden. 'He put the time into not just going up there and reading something.' Reddy has written speeches for presidents and world leaders. He also played Division I tennis at Miami University of Ohio. As a kid, he would attend the ATP event in Cincinnati, camping out on the practice courts to watch Andre Agassi, Stefan Edberg and Ivan Lendl. Their talent was mesmerizing. But when Reddy listened to Federer speak about effortlessness, he thought about the deliberate practice — the drills, the reps, the hours — he witnessed on that practice court in Cincinnati. 'It's the things we tell ourselves growing up,' Reddy said. 'No matter what you do, just keep practicing, keep working, keep learning. There are just some things that are very enduring about discipline.' The structure of the speech was clear and clever, and the storytelling was compelling, Reddy said. Federer had something to say, and his earnest vulnerability allowed the message to break through. But there was another reason the address felt authentic: Federer opened up, sharing himself with the audience, at one point even jokingly referring to himself as 'Dr. Roger' instead of 'Dr. Federer.' 'One of the strategies that Federer uses that good leaders use is to crack the door,' said Stephen D. Cohen, a professor of business communication at Johns Hopkins. 'I always tell people, 'Don't feel like you have to swing the door wide open and feel like you have to share your deepest, darkest secrets. Your goal is to crack the door. To share a little piece of yourself.'' Federer's second lesson: It's only a point. It was here that he shared the story of his five-set loss to Rafael Nadal in the 2008 Wimbledon final, a match widely considered by many as one of the greatest of all time. Seeking his sixth consecutive Wimbledon title, Federer had lost the first two sets, clawed back into the match by winning tie-breaks in the third and fourth sets, only to lose 9-7 in an epic fifth, the match ending in the evening dusk. Advertisement 'You can work harder than you thought possible and still lose,' Federer said, before adding: 'Perfection is impossible.' It was at this moment that Federer referenced his career record and his percentage of points won: 54 percent. 'Negative energy is wasted energy,' Federer said. 'You want to become a master at overcoming hard moments.' If you lose one point, there's no use in wallowing, because there might be another point — a break point, a set point — that means more. The match is long. There's always time to come back. In classical rhetoric terms, the anecdote was an example of logos, or using a compelling statistic to appeal to logic. 'Because it's counterintuitive, those stats become noteworthy and set up the rest of his argument,' said James Holtje, a professional speech writer and adjunct professor at Columbia. In tennis, a small, consistent edge over your opponent can translate into big margins in the long run. Nadal, for instance, also won exactly 54 percent of his points. And when Carlos Alcaraz defeated Jannik Sinner on Sunday in the French Open final — in one of the greatest matches since the 2008 Wimbledon final — Alcaraz, the champion, actually won one fewer point than Sinner. It's an easy concept to apply to almost any field. In 2022, Ronald van Loon, a portfolio manager at BlackRock, authored a paper on the percentage of investment decisions that need to be correct to beat market benchmarks for returns. He researched markets, crunched the numbers and came up with a number: As low as 53 percent. Michael Kosta, a rotating host of The Daily Show on Comedy Central and a former professional tennis player, viewed the clip through the lens of a standup comedian. Federer may have only won 54 percent of his points, Kosta said, but he always seemed to win the points that mattered most. 'He always brought his best at the right time,' Kosta said. 'And that's an important part of comedy, too. You can have a rough five minutes in your set. You can lose the audience. But as long as you get them back by the end, I think that's kind of most important.' One of the most important parts of any speech or presentation is connecting with the audience. Cohen, the professor at Johns Hopkins, said Federer utilized a strategy he teaches: What's in it for them — or WIIFT. 'What Federer does here that is so powerful is he captures the moment and he understands what's keeping these students up at night,' Cohen said. 'It's the fact they're transitioning from one part of their life to another, just like Federer is transitioning from being a tennis pro and he has to figure out what comes next.' Advertisement Which set up Federer's final lesson: Life is bigger than the court. In an interview with ESPN's Chris McKendry last summer at Wimbledon, Federer explained he had two goals. He wanted to have fun and keep the audience awake. 'That's also my take on life,' he said. 'It's like, 'We got to have fun along the way.' ' When Federer was 14, he left home in Basel to attend a school in the French part of Switzerland. He was homesick at first, but he came to appreciate the act of exploration, of traveling the world, experiencing new cultures and undertaking what he called 'life on the move.' He also had a realization: 'I knew that tennis could show me the world. But tennis could never be the world.' The graduates before him would be record-breakers and world travelers, leaders and philanthropists. In other words, they were going places, and if they ever saw him in the future, he said, they should say hi. As Federer concluded his speech in the rain, he finished up his 'tennis lessons' and pivoted to something fun — a real tennis lesson. He stood on stage and clutched a racket in his hand, suggested an Eastern grip and showcased the proper placement for your knuckles, which, he said, should allow for easy switching from forehand to backhand. He extolled the paramount importance of footwork on the court, same with the takeback and the follow through. He flashed a grin. 'No, this is not a metaphor,' he said. 'It's just good technique.' Rustin Dodd is a senior writer for Peak. He last wrote about his experience a secret to workplace happiness. Follow Peak here. (Illustration: Dan Goldfarb / The Athletic; Minas Panagiotakis / Getty Images)
Yahoo
09-06-2025
- General
- Yahoo
MJ's Motivation: 'Failing forwards vs backwards'
Think about a recent setback you've gone through and ask yourself, 'How did I respond?'Chances are, one of two things happened: You either ran from it, trying to avoid the discomfort or you embraced it, recognizing there was something to is the difference between failing forward and failing others, repeating mistakes or giving up: That is failing taking responsibility, learning from mistakes or building a sense of perseverance: That is failing really comes down to how we respond, not the experience itself. For some, failure accelerates progress acting as fuel. For others it becomes a barrier. We will fail again. Every one of this point on, commit to doing whatever it takes to fail forward. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Entrepreneur
02-06-2025
- Business
- Entrepreneur
I Created a Meeting to Call Out My Team's Mistakes. What Happened Next Surprised Me.
This story appears in the May 2025 issue of Entrepreneur. Subscribe » There's an idea rooted in startup culture: You've got to fail to win. People love to throw that around, but we still aren't very good at actually admitting or discussing those failures. We'd rather brush them under the rug — and as a result, we never really learn from them. I decided to fix that at Biller Genie, the company I cofounded with Thomas Aronica. It's a platform that automates billing and invoicing to get people paid faster. I wanted to know every screwup my team was making in real time and face them head-on. So I created a "Fuckup of the Month" meeting, where all of our employees gather to share their mistakes. The point isn't to be dramatic. It's to learn together to solve our problems faster. And you know what? It works. At our first meeting, people were hesitant, so I led by example. I started by telling them my own screwups. I emphasized that everyone's going to make a mistake, but the important part is: Will you own it or cover it up? How will you fix it? What will you learn? How do you put up safeguards so it won't happen again? And how do we all move forward? Related: Why Failure Is Crucial in Finding Your True Purpose Over time, the meetings have become livelier and more open. I start by asking for volunteers, and it often begins with something lame, like, Oh man, I locked my keys in my car. But once people get warmed up, they'll share maybe 10 or 15 fuckups — and some are big. I'm usually already aware of those, because I've had to deal with the fallout. But the rest of the team might be hearing about them for the first time. And when they do, the whole room stops — and it's like, we're going to fix this together. Take this example: A few years ago, a team member was on a training call with a customer. When the customer started speaking negatively about one of our partners, the team member agreed and also spoke badly about the partner. Then, to add insult to injury, a manager inadvertently sent that Zoom recording to — yup! — the very partner in question! No one told me that this had happened. Eventually, I got a call from that partner saying, "This is defamation." I confronted the manager, and he brought it up at our next Fuckup of the Month meeting. He admitted that he hadn't fully understood the repercussions, which was useful: It made me realize that I needed to train the entire company on defamation, libel, and slander, and reinforce that our partners are our most important assets — we need to protect them at all costs. I also made a new rule: If you do anything that could put us in jeopardy with our partners, immediately race to my office. When employees share their screwups and see me reacting constructively, it sends an important message: "I won't punish you for failing." However, I do expect people to be open about their mistakes and learn from them. Related: 6 Things You Gain By Embracing Failure and Learning From Mistakes Image Credit: Evana Vazquez Here's another doozy: An employee accidentally did something that caused a customer's invoices to be sent to the wrong company. In this case, he told us as soon as it happened. We discussed this at the next Fuckup of the Month meeting, and the team drew many lessons from it. The first is to get help quickly. Because the employee told us about his mistake immediately, we were able to fix it without any serious repercussions. Additionally, I realized that I needed to emphasize to the team the importance of double-and triple-checking their work. I reminded them that handling people's finances was a big responsibility and that doing it correctly was a major priority. "As a company, we do move fast," I acknowledged, "but not at the expense of accuracy. Take a few extra minutes if you need to." Sometimes, our Fuckup meetings teach us lessons about our technology. This happened when a junior employee was training someone on our system and accidentally changed the billing settings for 3,500 of our customers. Major problem. But again, this employee came straight to find me and even interrupted a meeting we were having with one of our largest partners. She was shaking and said, "I need to speak with you right now." That moment took guts, and I think the culture we built with our Fuckup meetings gave her the courage to do it. Had she not told us, things could have gone very wrong. Instead, with her help, we were able to take care of the problem that day. Plus, her mistake exposed a vulnerability in our system, and we ended up making our technology better. I was so impressed by the way she handled it all that we gave her the "Fuckup of the Year Award" — which we truly consider a badge of honor! What I've learned is this: When you build a culture of owning your failures, you become better at creating solutions. And by talking about your fuckups, you ensure that they don't happen again. Related: Want to Be a Successful Entrepreneur? Fail.
CBC
28-05-2025
- General
- CBC
Independent engineering report says city's response to water main rupture met professional standards
A report conducted by the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Alberta, says pre-stressed concrete cylinder pipe, or PCCP, was to blame for the Bearspaw South Feeder Main failure.
