Why Failure Works
Say X has an 80% chance of failing.
- So, X has a 20% chance of succeeding.
That means, you succeed 1 time for 5 tries (on average); or even better:
- You succeed 2 times for 10 tries.
- You suceed 5 times for 25 tries.
- You succeed 20 times for 100 tries.
- You succeed 100 times for 500 tries.
- Etc., etc., etc.
That is, the more times you try/experiment/test, the
more successes you'll find.
SCHWIN2THETOP.
Why 9866996798664489 Business Owners Fail
- Bob: 'I give myself one shot to succeed.'
Therefore, Bob has an 80% chance of failing. Because Bob gives himself 1 try, the odds are overwhelmingly against him that he'll succeed once.
BOB FAIL.
Don't Fail! Hooray!
The true path to succeeding as an entrepreneur (or at anything else)?
- Keep trying.
- Keep experimenting.
- Keep persisting.
The more you try, the more successes you'll find.
The statistics game favors you with the more number of tries/experiments/tests that you do.
How TV Networks Succeed
Networks know, based on past data, that a certain percentage of their new shows will succeed with audiences.
Therefore, they test X shows every season to give themselves the best shot at getting a target number of successes.
Why do you see a freakish string of low budget, new shows on ABC, NBC, FOX, etc. every season -- and why will you continue to see them every year?
They know the numbers rule:
- The more # of tries = the more # of successes.
Keep trying.
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Posted December 16 in Starting It, Sales & Marketing, Life, Innovation |
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on "Why Failure Works"jseyah (Rank: #11)
keep trying keep trying keep trying! that can just not be said enough. too many people give up way too easily. even i gave up to easily! i came back and tried again after a while though and now i am pretty happy with my meager but growing success.
failure is the only option if you don't keep trying.
diamyaz (Rank: #6)
I think of it as a way to weed out the weak.If you can't handle failure you shouldn't be in a position of power and you shouldn't run a business.It takes a great deal of resilience to do something like that and some people just can't hack it.
newworldorder (Rank: #40)
One thing that helps a lot is keeping a running tally of your trials. It's pretty sobering when you think the whole world's rejected, when in fact, only 3 people in your small insignificant town rejected you...
kimberrus (Rank: #9)
I wish I had kept a tally like that from the beginning nwo but I didn't think about it. I usually tell people who are starting out that 10% of my bids to clients were accepted but the more I think about the more I think that number might be much higher.
I kind of think that setting people up with low expectations can be good for them though when they see success sooner than expected.
e.ferg (Rank: #10)
Way too many people get discouraged after their first failure but I kind of agree that it's a good thing like Dia said... Weed out the weak... but I also think that it's just part of human nature to give up on things they don't succeed at because they feel like failures... Persistence is not something that is taught anymore...