People sometimes ask me whether there is a single, simple principle that will help everyone in the organization to learn and grow and improve over time, regardless of an individual\u2019s position or level of experience. There is. But it may come as a surprise to you: embracing failure and embracing it quickly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
No matter where we are in our careers, we need to learn to embrace failure. Everyone\u2019s going to fail \u2013 it\u2019s a critical part of the learning process. You probably failed when you were a kid, learning how to ride a bike. Or maybe you failed the first time you took your driver\u2019s test. Most video games are designed to get users to learn from failure. Think about it: there are no instructions, you just figure it out as you go \u2013 which means you fail. We all<\/em> fail in ways big and small, in all the different roles that we take on throughout each day. Failure is going to happen! That\u2019s a fact of life. The big question is whether we are failing within<\/em> boundaries we\u2019ve identified for ourselves ahead of time, and whether we are learning <\/em>from the failures we experience, and thereby growing and succeeding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you\u2019re in a position of leadership, it\u2019s vitally important to understand this point, as well as constantly look for ways to protect people\u2019s self-esteem. Sometimes people on your team will tend to stop trying when they fail. They may confuse failure within a certain role <\/em>(salesperson, say) with failure as a person. <\/em>We need to find ways to remind them that how they perform within a role is completely different than their self-concept. Because if they confuse the two, their self-esteem will take a hit each and every time they fail, and their growth and development will suffer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Your salespeople, and you as a sales leader, should all be comfortable seeing yourselves as a “I-10\u201d \u2013 meaning your identity, or your self-concept, shows up as 10 on a scale of 1-10, regardless of how you happen to perform within any given role. That doesn\u2019t mean you\u2019re arrogant, but it does mean you have a healthy self-concept. It means you understand that failure within the role you have taken on is ultimately a positive. Failure\u2019s not something you fear or try to conceal. It\u2019s something you can learn from. In fact, it\u2019s the very best <\/em>experience to learn from.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Within any given role \u2013 parent, salesperson, sales leader, golfer, whatever \u2013 do we want <\/em>to perform at a level of 10 out of 10? Of course! But we have countless different roles in our lives. Are we going to be a 10 on everything? No. And if we happen to have a rough day in one of our roles, and we show up at a 2 in that role, we need to understand that that doesn\u2019t have anything to do with who we actually are. <\/em>Our self-concept, our sense of self-worth, still shows up at a 10. The only thing that\u2019s different is we\u2019ve just found an area where we can improve. That\u2019s absolutely essential. It\u2019s something to notice!<\/p>\n\n\n\n