Notes on Fail Fast, Fail Often #1

Just bought this book
Fail Fast, Fail Often: How Losing Can Help You Win
by Ryan Babineaux & John Krumboltz

Here are some notes...

Reframing Failure

Failure is:

• Seeing that you are off course
• Realising you need to learn more
• Product testing
• Finding out how you need help
• Exploring
• Discovering that you've ben misinformed
• Experimenting
• Seeing how you need to work harder
• Learning that it is not your best idea
• Market research
• Prototyping

Daily Guiding Questions

• What did you do today that was a lot of fun?
• What is something interesting that you learned?
• What happened that made you appreciate your life, work, family or friends?
• What did you encounter that made you curious?
• What did you experience that filled you with awe?
• What did you see that was beautiful or inspiring?
• What new things did you try or new places did you visit?
• What fulfilling social interactions did you have?

"Failing Forward"

• Identify your fearFind something that you would like to try but have hesitated to do because of your fear of failure.
  (e.g. I want to try working as a professional photographer, but I am afraid that I might not be good enough at it to be successful)
  
• Reverse your thinking
  Come up with a way that you can fail at it as quickly as possible
  (e.g. I am going to find a setting where I can take lots of bad pictures and let people see them. I can try at my cousin's wedding, which is happening next month.)
  
• Do it anywayGet out there and give it a try. Ask others for help and feedback
  (e.g. While taking pictures at the wedding, I will let people know I am a beginner and ask for comments and suggestions.)
• Fail forwardUse your exploratory actions as a means to learn and discover what you need to know.
  (e.g. What parts of taking the wedding photographs were the most or least enjoyable? What pictures did people like or dislike? What came naturally, and what do I need to work on?)
• Find the next challenge
  Seek out the next opportunity to do things at the limits of your abilities
  (e.g. Next time I will ask to take pictures at a wedding where I get paid for my work.)

Some limiting "Not Yet" thoughts

"I will be ready to get going when":

• The economy picks up
• I feel inspired
• Someone tells me the right thing to do
• I have more money in savings
• The kids leave for college
• Things settle down
• I am in a more supportive relationship
• I discover my inner child
• I quit my dead-end job
• I feel more confident
• I forgive and am forgiven
• I finish my project
• My house is cleaned up
• I come up with a plan
• I overcome my limiting beliefs
• I do my taxes
• I am absolutely certain
• I attend a few more workshops
• I get permission
• I am better prepared
• I don't feel so tired

Focus on Opportunities, Not Problems

"Find a place inside where there's joy, and the joy will burn out the pain."

- Joseph Campbell