I’ve spent all my professional years surrounded by knowledge workers who were afraid of screwing things up. They equated the failure to losing their job.
I don’t blame them. Most of us have had a few cold sweaty nights trying to figure out what we would do if terrible things happened. How would you pay that hefty home mortgage, the schools for the kids, and all the debt that comes with participating in modern society?
The idea of failure is paralyzing. Therefore, we go the safe way, avoiding experimentation and relying on true and tested approaches.
But, you know what?
There is no safe way. There is no true and tested approach in knowledge work.
What works today is the result of previous experimentations. It’s the outcome of multiple failures that a few bold minds had to endure before some eventually succeeded.
What works today might not work anymore tomorrow. Nothing’s for granted.
We, as knowledge workers, are paid to think.
So, the next time you need to make a complex decision, make sure you apply your critical thinking. It will help you:
- play multiple scenarios and their respective outcomes,
- assess risks in relative terms, not in “doom-and-gloom” mode,
- discern what to measure and what not to measure.
Most importantly, critical thinking will help you reframe failure for what it truly is: a wisdom accelerator.
With the right critical thinking applied, chances are one of the scenarios you predicted will happen.
Even if it’s the worst-case, you’ll be prepared to take action and won’t lose your precious energy commiserating on bad luck and an upcoming pink slip!
And if you come to a point where you feel stuck, let The Sherpa be your guide!