"Always forward." We choose our path. Don't become hostage to failure.
In Failing Forward, John Maxwell discusses a failure of charismatic Arnold Palmer, he of "Arnie's Army" at the LA Open in January, 1961. Palmer fell from contention with a 12 on the 18th hole of the first round. He went on to win 62 PGA Championships and 95 professional tournaments.
Dean Smith players taught players to recognize, admit, learn, and forget mistakes. That helped Carolina to superior shot quality and a shooting percentage among the perennial ACC leaders.
We experience loss and carry baggage. Nobody wanted him. Dennis Rodman was a high school bench player and worked as an airport custodian prior to giving basketball a final shot after a growth spurt. The rest is history including eight all-NBA defensive selections and two-time NBA defensive player of the year...in a Hall of Fame career.
Elena Delle Donne was a UCONN commit but dropped out after a couple of days to be closer to family in Delaware. She walked on to the Blue Hens volleyball team and later played college ball there. During her sophomore and senior years, she struggled with Lyme Disease. She ultimately recovered and became WNBA MVP and scoring champion in 2015.
Leaving failure behind, dropping our baggage, is a skill. When we don't, we can quit, engage in self-destructive behaviors like alcohol and drug abuse, become isolated and experience anxiety and depression, or suffer the pain of regret.
"Don't beat yourself up; there will always be someone to do that for you." Use a three-step program to overcome failure:
Begin the day: How can I improve today? Be specific. (What will I read, do, study?)
Close of business: WILT. What I learned today.
Before bedtime: Appreciation trio (3 things I'm grateful for today) of Shawn Achor. Use a 21-day program of appreciation using three unique items daily.
Gratitude leads to happiness. Happiness leads to success. Success reverses failure.
Lagniappe: Key notes from Thinking in Bets, by Annie Duke
- Think in terms of probabilities...within ranges of possibilities.
- Everything is a bet. A life insurance policy is a put option on our life (betting on death).
- "The quality of our lives = the sum of decision quality (bets)+ luck."
- "In the long run, the more objective person will win against the more biased person."
- It's okay to acknowledge that we don't know.
- Better process won't guarantee that we won't make failing decisions, but a bad process assures that will happen more often.
- Total belief in our confidence results in LESS confidence among our peers.
- Once we hold beliefs, we are likely to shut out disconfirming evidence.
- More objectivity results in improved accuracy.
- Consider "backcasting." What must happen for something to occur? "College basketball is not plagued by scandal." That means that FBI surveillance tapes and witness testimony must be false.
