Learning From Mistakes Is Overrated

Note from Yann: 👋 Hey there, I’m Yann AïtBachir ! Each week, I share practical tips to help you level up your career.

This week, I'm challenging the "fail fast" fallacy.

Learning from mistakes is overrated!

You learn just as much, if not more, from your successes.

💬 I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments!

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You hear it all the time. "Learn from your mistakes."

It's supposed to be inspiring. But is it really good advice?

"Fail early, fail often." "Go big or go home." These sayings push you to take risks.

But they're from the world of venture capital. That world is different.

In venture capital, big wins hide many losses.

One Facebook pays for hundreds of failures.

Your career isn't a venture capital fund. You only have one.

Repeated failures hurt. It wastes time and energy. It can stop you from moving forward.

Mistakes have real costs.

They can cost you money and emotional well-being.

Not all mistakes are good.

I have made mistakes. I will make. Same for you. Everyone does.

The goal isn't to avoid mistakes completely. The goal is to make the right mistakes.

Not All Mistakes Are Equal

In the "fail fast" culture, people forget that not all mistakes are equal.

Some mistakes help you grow. Others just set you back.

A good mistake is one that:

• Tests an assumption: A marketing manager tries a new social media strategy to reach a younger audience, even though it might not work. This tests their assumptions about what resonates with that demographic.
• Stretches your skills: A junior designer volunteers to create a complex infographic, even though they've never done one before. This pushes them to learn new design tools and techniques.
• Is a calculated risk: A salesperson spends extra time building a relationship with a potentially difficult client, knowing it might not lead to a sale immediately. They're taking a calculated risk to potentially land a valuable long-term customer.
• Opens new doors: A programmer experiments with a new coding language in their free time, even if it's not currently used at their job. This could lead to new opportunities or a career shift down the line.

These mistakes help you learn and improve.

They show initiative, a willingness to learn, and a proactive approach to your career.

A bad mistake is:

• Careless and rushed: A software engineer deploys code with a known bug because they're under pressure to meet a deadline, causing a system crash and service disruption for users.
• Ignoring information: A product manager ignores negative user feedback about a new feature, leading to low adoption rates and customer churn.
• Poorly managed risk: A data scientist implements a new machine learning model without thoroughly testing its accuracy, resulting in biased predictions and flawed business decisions.
• Repeating the same error: A UX designer keeps using a complex navigation pattern despite consistent user complaints, leading to a frustrating user experience and decreased engagement with the product.

Bad mistakes are often avoidable.

They can damage your reputation, hinder your progress, and create unnecessary stress.

When "fail fast" is taken too literally, people make more of these mistakes because they prioritize speed over thoughtful action.

The Importance of Learning from Success

Sure, we learn from mistakes. But guess what? Learning from success is even better.

Why? Because success shows us what actually works.

It's like having a cheat sheet for doing things right!

It's not just about avoiding old mistakes. It's about repeating those awesome wins.

Studies (like Mindset: The New Psychology of Success, Carol S. Dweck, 2006) show that success actually rewire our brains. We get more optimistic and confident.

So, when something goes well, celebrate but don't just move on.

Take a moment to figure out why it worked.

Did your team communicate really well? Was the project super organized? Did everyone play to their strengths?

Those are the golden nuggets you want to keep.

Use that knowledge for the next project.

Retrospectives are not just for failures.

Practical Advice for Professionals

Find a Mentor

Find someone who has done well in your field. Learn from them.

A mentor can share what worked for them.

For example, if you want to be a product manager, find someone who has done it well. They can teach you about planning and decision-making.

Aim for Smart Mistakes

Don’t try to "fail fast" just because it sounds cool.

Aim for mistakes that help you grow and teach you something.

If you take on a new role, lead a project even if it’s tough. Mistakes in this context help you learn.

Learn from Success

After a project, look at what went right.

Understanding your successes helps you improve and build confidence.

If you handled a tough situation well, think about what you did right and use it next time.

Take Calculated Risks

Take smart risks, not reckless ones. Use good judgment.

Before trying something new, think about the pros and cons. Make sure you’re prepared.

Make Smart Decisions

Keep learning and build your skills so you can make good choices. Seek feedback and understand your field well. For example, if you’re working on a product, get customer feedback to make it better.

"Fail fast" and "go big or go home" might sound exciting, but they often lead to problems.

Not all mistakes are worth making. Focus on making good mistakes that help you grow.

Good leaders try to be right most of the time.

They learn from both successes and failures but focus on making smart choices that lead to success.

Instead of celebrating failure, let’s focus on success and what we can learn from it.

Note from Yann: 👋 Hey folks! Thanks for reading the 25th edition of The Simple Leader’s Playbook.

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