Perspectives on Entrepreneurial Failure

It’s time to talk about a very sensitive topic most entrepreneurs would rather not even think about: Failure. In my last article, Are Entrepreneurs Born or Made? I mentioned that a perennial key skill (or trait according to some) of successful entrepreneurs is tolerance for failure. If you’re the type who would just as soon avoid the topic altogether or have a “failure is not an option” attitude, then it’s especially important that you read this article. I firmly believe that how you think about and cope with failure is one of the most important keys to your success in business.

If we’re honest, then we’d have to admit that the fear of failure is what prevents many would-be entrepreneurs from ever trying. For others it is a feeling in the pit of their stomach that causes them stress and anxiety when they do make the attempt. Why is that? I think the answer is relatively simple: Despite how enlightened we may or may not be, society and culture as a whole still denigrate the concept of failure. Whether it’s sports or business, we do not embrace or celebrate failure. In the midst of the Apollo 13 disaster when NASA was trying to figure out how to get the astronauts back to Earth safely, flight controller Jerry C. Bostick was credited with saying, “Failure is not an option.” This attitude is deeply embedded in our collective psyche, but it’s simply not realistic.

The plain fact of the matter is that most of the entrepreneurs we hold up as examples all chalked up major failures on their journey to success. Henry Ford went broke five times, including two company bankruptcies before he found success with his Ford Motor Company. Colonel Sanders suffered more than 1,000 rejections as he tried to sell his 11-herbs-and-spices recipe for fried chicken before finally cashing in for millions. Thomas Edison went through something like a thousand attempts before finally coming up with an electric light bulb that worked. When a reporter asked him how he felt about failing a thousand times, Edison’s response was brilliant: “I didn’t fail 1,000 times. The light bulb was an invention with 1,000 steps.”

Edison was showing a great attitude towards failure. If you think of success as a journey, then any given step of that journey might go in the wrong direction. Edison obviously thought of each failure as a mere bump on the road to success. The interesting thing about a bump, however, is that it’s slightly higher than the terrain around it. If you pause, you might just get a slightly new perspective that informs where you go from there. Iconic musician Johnny Cash built on this idea when he said, “You build on failure. You use it as a stepping stone.”

What’s your attitude regarding failure? Do you avoid it at all cost or do you embrace it is an essential aspect of the entrepreneurial process that has a valuable contribution to make on your journey? How you answer this question is the key that can unlock the door to success.