"The successful man will profit from his mistakes and try again in a different way." -- Dale Carnegie
Among many others, Peter Drucker stressed the importance of learning from failure. Indeed, as Mark Howell sees it in this recent post, Drucker saw this as the first requirement for organizational health. Organizations like Apple and Google (see John Agno's recent post) have shown that if you want to move fast, you are going to need to take some risks - you must "fail faster."
Drucker was not alone. Thomas Edison reportedly viewed his many failed attempts at making a working light bulb as successful steps toward the final solution. And learning organizations like the U.S. Army routinely use "After Action Reports" to sort out lessons learned from engagements.
So how do you create a culture that learns from its mistakes?
First, you need to be open to failure. You demonstrate that best by adopting Charles Bosk's motto of "Forgive and Remember"
"Forgive so that people are willing to talk about and admit the errors that are inevitable in any human endeavor, and remember, so that the same mistakes don't occur repeatedly."
Once you hear of a failure, find facts, not fault. Ask questions to drive to the root cause of the failure and help your team sort through changes that will prevent a repeat of the failure.
And then, take those actions!
