Amy Edmondson, a Harvard Business School professor and author of "The Right Kind of Wrong," dives into the fascinating world of intelligent failure. She discusses how shame, perfectionism, and social media hinder personal growth. Emphasizing the value of psychological safety, she explores how teams can learn from setbacks without blame. Amy also highlights the importance of self-compassion and a growth mindset, advocating for mindful engagement and understanding societal disparities in risk-taking. This thought-provoking conversation reshapes our view of failure.
Embracing failure and developing a culture of intelligent failure can lead to learning and progress.
Thorough research, seeking advice, and challenging distorted thinking patterns are essential for intelligent risk-taking.
Building psychological safety within teams fosters open discussion of failure and promotes a culture of learning and improvement.
Deep dives
Creating a Culture of Intelligent Failure
The podcast episode discusses the importance of embracing failure as a means to take risks and learn. It emphasizes the need to develop a culture of intelligent failure, which involves being willing to experiment and try new things. The speaker highlights the three types of failure: basic failure, complex failure, and intelligent failure. Intelligent failure is deemed as the right kind of wrong, as it leads to learning and progress. The podcast explores the obstacles to taking risks, such as perfectionism and fear of failure, and offers strategies to overcome them.
Contextual Awareness and Risk-Taking
The podcast episode emphasizes the significance of contextual awareness in relation to risk-taking. It suggests being clear about goals and recognizing whether the terrain is new or familiar. Doing thorough research and seeking advice from others can inform intelligent risk-taking. The speaker stresses the need to challenge distorted thought patterns and cultivate mindful, rational analysis when evaluating potential risks. Additionally, it encourages never worrying alone and seeking support from others to gain different perspectives and reduce anxiety.
Creating Psychological Safety
The podcast episode delves into the concept of psychological safety within interpersonal relationships, particularly in work teams. It underscores the importance of building an environment that promotes candid communication and learning. The speaker suggests framing the work, setting clear goals, and constantly reinforcing the purpose and significance of the team's endeavors. The episode also highlights the role of psychological safety in fostering a healthy failure culture, where risks can be taken and failures can be discussed openly for the purpose of learning and improvement.
The Importance of Taking Small, Thoughtful Bets
To increase the chances of success, it is crucial to take small, thoughtful bets rather than risking everything on one major endeavor. This approach allows for learning, adaptation, and minimizing potential losses. In new territory, with a clear hypothesis, it is advisable to start with small, manageable steps that can be easily adjusted and refined based on the outcomes. By avoiding overly large risks and focusing on small, calculated bets, individuals and companies can increase their chances of achieving their goals.
Learning from Failure and Cultivating a Growth Mindset
After experiencing failure, it is important to take the time to reflect and learn from the situation. Instead of immediately assigning blame, it is crucial to neutrally analyze what happened and understand the events without judgment. This process of storytelling helps gain a clearer understanding of the situation and enables better decision-making for future endeavors. Additionally, cultivating a growth mindset is essential for intelligent failure. Believing in the capacity for growth and improvement rather than fixed abilities allows individuals to see failure as an opportunity for learning and personal development, fostering resilience and the motivation to take risks.
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A Harvard Business School professor discusses how to get good at “intelligent failure.”
Amy C. Edmondson is the Novartis Professor of Leadership and Management at the Harvard Business School. Her latest book is called the Right Kind of Wrong. Her research examines psychological safety and teaming within and between organizations.
In this episode we talk about:
The problems of shame, perfectionism, and social media
How not to get caught up in analysis paralysis
The importance of self-compassion and a growth mindset
The benefits of worrying with someone else
Why redundancy is your friend
How to discuss failure without assigning blame
Why accepting your smallness can be freeing
Taking the time to learn from failure
The cognitive framework: stop, challenge, and choose
How to have a healthier relationships with anxiety and failure
Creating a culture of psychological safety
Recognizing that not everybody in society has the same permission to take risks
