Adam Grant

TED Talk Tuesday #208 – Failure is good

TED continues to spread ideas and help us all be better critical thinkers. Watching, listening and talking about TED Talks is a popular pastime for many in the CN&CO community.

We visit TED.com regularly to clear our heads, have a laugh, learn or get inspired. TED Talks open our minds, spark new ways of thinking and can lead to some very interesting conversations and business opportunities.

Each week we pick a favourite and publish it on a Tuesday, because we like how “TED Talk Tuesday” sounds. It’s also a way that the CN&CO team play their part in spreading ideas and helping to make the world a better place.

This week’s talk is in the form of a podcast called WorkLife where well-know TED speaker Adam Grant argues that “If you punish people for failing, they’ll do everything in their power to convince themselves and others that their project is not a failure.”

“Turns out making bad decisions is especially easy if you’re afraid of failure. Rethinking can help us make better choices and learn from past mistakes.”

One of CN&CO’s founders, Carel Nolte, often argues that failing is important. Vital in fact – without failure, one doesn’t learn. One doesn’t explore new ways of thinking. One has less fun! Failure is not something to be ashamed of, but rather something to be encouraged and celebrated.

Carel cites the way that EasyEquities has grown to be South AFrica’s leading retail investment platform: “We don’t punish failure. Rather, we encourage all team members to take ownership of their outputs and to test innovative, agile ways of implementing these. Failure is a natural consequence and learning opportunity.”

As Jeff Bezos remarked – “If you absolutely can’y tolerate critics, then don’t do anything new or interesting”. Avoiding failure may feel safer, but doing so stunts innovation and opportunity.

Take a listen to Adam here

Carel is an investor in people and businesses, believing that 1+1 = (at least) 22. Working with a few basic concepts – best encapsulated in his believe that unless we are dead, anything is possible – Carel aims to build long-term sustainable value with like-minded individuals and companies, while having (a lot of!) fun.