FAIL - First Attempt in Learning

November 13, 2023

November 13, 2023

Happy Monday everyone! Lots going on in the Cleveland Product community this week, so let’s get to it!

Article of the Week

We Product Managers want to do things right the first time. We know the customers. We know the market. We know the competition. But we don’t know everything. So when we build something and it doesn’t work, or its results are less-than-impressive, we may consider that a failure.

But as the old acronym goes, FAIL is the First Attempt In Learning.

I really like the below article from Twenty One Toys about how failure and innovation work well together. Failure is natural part of innovation, and we should look at failure differently. Failure can be the fuel for us to get better, but we have to reflect on why we didn’t achieve what we wanted or expected, so we can do things differently next time.

I found the following three tips value in assessing failure and moving quickly beyond it:

  • Silence your inner critic: Instead of dwelling on what went wrong, look to the lessons learned and think positively about how you can improve your next approach.

  • Collect valuable data: Do some detective work and explore why your attempt fell short; try to identify the specific variables that led to this result.

  • Value progress: Acknowledge the progress you’ve made even when the result isn’t ideal, and make note of how past lessons helped you improve.

Click the button below to read the article from Twenty One Toys. And thanks to my mom for the acronym!

Product Jobs of the Week

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About the Author

My name is Shawn Leitner. I started the Cleveland Product networking group in 2017, which helps to connect Product professionals around Cleveland, providing them with a forum to network, learn, and share stories. For my day job, I'm a Product Consultant & Coach for Pathfinder Product and help clients implement strong Product practices so they can create products that their teams love building and their customers love using. Connect with me on LinkedIn or feel free to attend one of my events either virtually or in-person. Always up for meeting for a cup of coffee also!