What do you do if your program fails and you need to maintain a positive mindset?

There's no guarantee of 100% success, and failure is simply a stepping stone towards improvement. It's important to recognize that there's no merit in forcing positivity for the sake of it. Instead, allow yourself to fully experience the emotions of sadness and disappointment. By acknowledging and processing these feelings thoroughly, you can then gather the strength to rise again, armed with valuable insights and a renewed determination to succeed.

We have heard those cliches about not having success without failure, but that doesn't make accepting failure easier. When something happens that is disappointing or doesn't turn out how we wanted, we can start by acknowledging that's the case. It didn't work out. One thing you don't want to do is say, "Well, maybe it will be better next time." Accept that it was not the outcome you were expecting, but it will be better next time because you are committed to improving your process.

After acknowledging that your outcomes were not what you expected or hoped for, your team should be asking what can we learn from this. It isn't necessary to implement an entire process or outcome evaluation. You can still gather legitimate lessons learned by sitting with your team and reviewing the factors that contributed to the outcome.

Reflective practice not only sheds light on what went wrong but also transforms a negative experience into an invaluable opportunity for growth. Use these insights to craft a future plan that not only addresses past shortcomings but also sets a solid foundation for picking up the pieces and moving forward.

What if you stopped considering your unsuccessful efforts "failures" and instead "learning experiences?" Again the cliches we hear: "You will never know if you don't try." Reframing your thoughts to be solutions focused and not success/failure focused can lead to stronger teamwork, clearer plans, increased resources, and improved outcomes.

take a step back and try to detach your emotions from the current situation. Get up, take a walk for a few minutes whatever helps you regain an objective frame of mind. A clear head allows you to analyze the problem more effectively.

Don't underestimate the power of support from friends and family. Lean on your loved ones or friends during difficult times, as their encouragement and understanding can provide valuable emotional support and perspective.

As a leader, emotional intelligence is vital in handling the aftermath of a program failure. It's important not to point fingers or assign blame. Instead, adopt a collective mindset where the team takes ownership of the failure. Understanding the "why" behind the failure is essential, analyze what went wrong, identify areas for improvement, and learn from mistakes.

There are two skills that come to fore here - Find out the root cause : This needs technical skills to analyze, report and document - Maintain calm and composer : This needs emotional skills For all practical reasons, if the first one is done succinctly, there are high chances that second becomes easier. When you breakdown the problem into these two different but related elements, there is high chance that you would be motivated to solve it, plan ahead and get mentally prepared to handle them effectively. This looks apparent, but, people often do not identify and sequence them like above steps and hence do not apply necessary steps and skills as the situation demands

Reach out to colleagues, friends or mentors when you need another perspective. Explaining the problem out loud can provide new insights, and others may have faced similar challenges before. An extra set of eyes is invaluable.