You Have Permission to Fail

As a leader, your primary role is to help your employees grow and develop. To give them the courage to fail. Yes, fail. “Failure is the hallmark of success. — John Maxwell”

It was the summer of 2010, and I was the Assistant Club Manager at Grandfather Golf and Country Club. Like many young leaders, I thought I had all the answers, and I was overly confident. My boss at the time sensed that too, but instead of knocking me down a few pegs, he allowed me to show off my talents on the last day of the member guest golf tournament. That evening was the big dinner. This was not an ordinary meal but something the members looked forward to, a chance to show off their club to their friends. That night, the Chef and I were running the show. After all, I got this. But I quickly learned that I didn’t.?The food wasn’t coming out of the kitchen fast enough, we had the wrong items on the menu, and the service was slow. To put it mildly, it was not my best performance. The members knew it, I knew it, and so did my General Manager.

Through that failure, I learned to be better prepared, enhancing menu programming, service standards, and the importance of the proper staffing levels. My GM knew there was a fine line between letting someone fail and being a failure. He had taught me a lesson the hard way, and it’s a lesson that has stuck with me to this day.?

Experience is a better teacher than words. I give my team the rope they need to go out and create.?Pre-COVID, we had a manager that I asked to hire a maintenance person to work as a handyman around the club. The manager wanted the responsibility, so I gave it to him.?On paper, the candidate was great, but his attitude was terrible, as we learned within two months. He questioned assignments, and he had a poor work ethic. My manager didn’t know what to do and asked me for advice. I didn’t say I told you so, no, instead I helped him understand that there’s no growth without failures. Then I shared the importance of asking the right questions during the interview and looking at numerous candidates before going with the first one. It was a learning moment that taught him a valuable lesson that helped him bring on the dedicated, hard-working team he has today.?

By letting your staff fail, you show them that you trust their abilities. You are giving them permission to try. It’s like letting go of your child when they are learning to ride a bike for the first time. That trust creates comfort that allows them to share their opinions and ideas. It stimulates creativity, making the club better and improving overall performance. Through experience, they get better, they grow, and most importantly, it empowers them. An empowered team is more productive, not afraid to collaborate, and most importantly, they are satisfied employees.?

Learning through failure takes courage and a belief that you have the right team in place. Mistakes will be made, but as leaders, we must allow our staff to take risks. After all, without risk, there is no reward.