Allright - this is not Thomas Watson the golfer (although he would probably agree). It's from Thomas Watson - the former CEO of IBM. He is quoted as saying: "Would you like me to give you a formula for ...success? It's quite simple, really. Double your rate of failure.... You're thinking of failure as the enemy of success. But it isn't at all.....You can be discouraged by failure - or you can learn from it. So go ahead and make mistakes. Make all you can. Because, remember that's where you'll find success. On the far side of failure." - Thomas J. Watson.
Mr. Watson is describing one of the basic principles of success. Success is going from failure to failure with a learning attitude. Orrin Woodward was a self admitted slow starter in our business, but unlike many others, he decided to never quit learning.
If you ever stop learning, in whatever business you are in, you're done. I'll bet you know people who have quit their business mentally and are still in the business physically. Orrin never quit. He stayed mentally alert and continued to learn and grow. Even though he confessed to going slowly, Orrin did report that his growth bonus alone in 2003 was over 5 times his best earnings year as an engineer. Obviously, our business pays for those who are willing to fail, learn, grow, and win.
Be willing and never quit. You WILL win.
