Learn from mistakes

      The best way to learn something is to make mistakes first. Thomas Edison, who invented the light bulb, told his colleagues: “Of the 200 light bulbs that didn’t work, every failure told me something I was able to incorporate into the next attempt.” Benjamin Franklin, the US statesman and scientist once said: “I haven’t failed. I have had 10,000 ideas that didn’t work.”

      Both these people understood that failures and false starts are the condition of success. In fact, a surprising number of everyday objects had their beginnings in a mistake or a misunderstanding. Post-it notes, packets of crisps and even bread are all unexpected inventions. In 2600 BC, a tired Egyptian slave invented bread when the dough rose during his sleep. And crisps were first cooked by a chef in the USA when a customer complained that his fried potatoes were not thin enough.

      In 1968 Spencer Silver was trying to develop a strong adhesive when he accidentally invented a very weak glue instead. His colleague, Art Fry, decided to use it six years later, in 1974, to hold his bookmarks in his books and the post-it note was invented.

      Successful businesspeople have often made big, expensive mistakes in their past. When an employee of IBM made a mistake that cost the company $600,000, Thomos Watson, the chairman, was asked if he would fire the man. “Of course not,” he replied. “I have just spent $600,000 training him. I am not going to let another company benefit from experience.”

      The important thing to remember is that you need to learn from your mistakes. If you don’t, then there is no sense in making them.