Tuesday 23 March 2010

How do I learn "How to Fail?"

One drawback of my entire career has been that "NOBODY TAUGHT me to FAIL" Yes nobody taught me how to fail, like several others I learnt it on my own... some say it is great, you get your experience "hard way", some say "that's life".. I always felt and wanted to know if there was a way to learn how to fail... Its very important to know this as we keep on failing in our own way and that too in an untrained way...

So for those curious minds in there who are looking with a cross eye and for those of you who think that why in the age of "Learning Success" somebody wants to learn "How to Fail". Here is why I feel so:

Years ago when I founded TechShepherds, there was a vision "Success". Years later when I defounded TechShepherds ( around 2 years later) I realised that I was late to fail. Those days were the most painful days, because you stopped your company for whatsoever reason but there was a label of Failure, There was some money gone and there was a credibility that was at stake. Years later I worked for a company that spent millions and millions to work on a product, they spent years before they realised that it was time for them to scrap it as they were too late. In other words they were slow to fail?

Now you get the point!!!!! Yes it is important you know how to fail, if you know how you would decide when... I had a friend who co-founded a company 2 years ago, he went ahead with his partners and a investment of $20K to start working on a product... they built a Rocket in terms of the work they were doing.. a social network with enterprise base... They spent 3 months before they realised that the idea was too old and not fit for the market... they changed the product to move away from Enterprise Social network to a Local Social network. Result they saved the troubles to build and sell something that they saw was moving towards an end. In other words they saved a few hundreds of Bucks, They saved some partners and some money of Investors...

So how to find out that you will fail and then decide to fail fast?

1. You are working against a force that is well equipped financially, technically and in terms of value drive.

2. Things are no longer the way they used to be. You are in the 60's and the world has moved to 2010. Markets have changed, people too.

3. You can grow but your growth can never be of 200% for a period longer and consistent.

4. You are depending too much on your ideas without exploring debates , discussions and suggestions from outside world.

5. You dont like new Ideas anymore

6. Your Product is not improvising anymore...

Wait a while... Review yourself.. Identify the Failure that is coming to you... And Fail...

Yes Fail. So that you can take the lessons and improve, but at the same time you avoid making blunders...Earlier you know about the failure, earlier you learn and earlier you improve... In other words you learn how to fail... In a way that will help you and others with you...

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