Great Lessons Learned From Failing

While lessons can be gained from succeeding, they can also be gained from failing.  Either way, the most important takeaway is to apply your ‘lessons learned from past activities in the future.

The following tips emerged in a recent Reddit thread from people who have failed in business and are sharing what they would do differently next time around to succeed.

• Marketing and sales are key to a business’s success.
• Learn to spot signs of toxic personalities.
• Go with your gut.
• Take feedback seriously.
• Solve the problem and then create the product.
• Learn how to say no.
• Delegate.

In the words of Robert F. Kennedy, “Only those who dare to fail greatly can ever achieve greatly.”

The simple truth is that no great success was ever achieved without failure. Edison made 10,000 attempts to create a light bulb.  Dyson tried 5,126 times to invent a bagless vacuum cleaner. At age 65, Colonel Harland Sanders began franchising his chicken business using his $105 monthly Social Security check. Today, Kentucky Fried Chicken operates more than 15,000 restaurants globally.

Jill, What Can I Do?  Failure is a necessary stepping stone to achieving dreams, so it’s in all of our best interests to embrace it and leverage it to our advantage.  Take a moment to think about a failure in your life and your critical lessons learned.  When you apply these lessons in future endeavors, you cannot help but be more successful the next time around.  Knowledge is power.