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Moving On—From Sucess and Failure

When a decision has been a success, note what made it so, revel in it, and then get ready for the next one. Remember, good leaders have a track record of good decisions, and they know that one good decision does not a success make. Instead, it is the accumulation of multiple good decisions that give them the confidence and knowledge to keep making them again and again.

But though you will certainly want to strive to always make the right decision, the fact is no one is ever 100 percent. Let’s face it; even professional baseball players strive for a batting average of only 30 to 40 percent—and they make the big bucks.

If you serve in a decision-making role long enough, you will stumble. It is inevitable. And just as you would want to revel for a short time in a successful decision, you don’t want to wallow in the failures. They are going to happen.

The best way to handle failed decisions is to treat them like the successes: note what made them failures, learn from them, and get ready for the next one. And if you apply what you learn to that next one, you will greatly reduce the risk of repeating the past.