The F-Word – Dealing with Failure

Failure is a very personal thing. We all feel the notion that we have failed in some way, but it’s important to calibrate if it is in fact true. To others around you it may be fine ... so don’t beat yourself up. Yes, I’m sure you feel you can do better and you should. But always take stock of the bigger picture. Is your failure down to your way of working, or is it just the wrong result? There is a difference.

Failure is normal

We all fail at something at some point. If everything seems a straightforward success, then you’re probably not trying hard enough. You’re staying firmly within your comfort zone. If you don’t break the rules and push boundaries you’ll never progress. Failure is a process towards success. That’s how I see things. 

Don’t let the negative energy win

When things go wrong, or don’t turn out how you expect, it’s very important to observe the opportunities rather than the negatives. During my formative years in the design business I often found that I wasn’t keeping up with the pace of others. I lived in a very competitive world, and more often than not someone else’s design was chosen.  During my first experience of this I found it extremely difficult to manage my sense of failure. I remember it was actually quite devastating. I knew that I had to try harder to reach not only the standards of others, but my own expectations of success. This was indeed a huge lesson. 

I taught myself positivity and how to improve, rather than dwell on the negative. I taught myself the art of opportunity. Creating a personal process of improvement each time I felt I hadn’t meet the grade. This process of increasing my quality of work became a habit and therefore not even in question after a while. Subsequent moments of would-be failure no longer existed in my mind.

Turning failures into lessons

To me there are two forms of failure. One is not meeting a particular standard of work, which you can resolve through harder application. The other is failure in not finding the correct solution. This sort of failure is absolutely fine.

The creative process is full of discovery. You have to try things that may not work. And the things that do not work are an important part of the process. Creativity has to be, by nature, a series of failures in order to reach a successful result. These failures are an important part of the process; a journey of discovery to find out what does and doesn’t work. There’s always another answer, another way through it.

Managing other’s failures

I often have to question the solutions of my design team as they may not fulfil some of my expectations. But it’s important to re-calibrate my expectations to their own sense of what is right, which I duly respect. However, if I feel a designer is not meeting the expectations of the design team, then a discussion is necessary in order to help. It is hugely important that help is at hand for those who are struggling to find the right answer. We all need that at times.

A new direction

Often a failure is a lesson in direction – it’s a setback which allows you to take a more philosophical view of the bigger picture. Sometimes in life things don’t work. You may well come out of a situation wanting to do something differently. Ultimately, that failure can lead you to follow a new path which is better for you.