“There is no such thing as failure. Failure is just life trying to move us in another direction.”
~ Oprah Winfrey
In life, things often don’t go as planned. But the good news is, sometimes the results can be even better than you had planned
Consider Post-It Notes.
In 1968, Dr. Spencer Silver, a chemist at 3M, was on a mission to create a super-strong adhesive. But instead he ended up creating an adhesive that was weak, pressure-sensitive, and could easily be peeled away without leaving any residue.
On paper, this sounded like a failed experiment – after all, who needs a weak glue?
For years, this peculiar adhesive sat unused.
That was until a colleague of Silver, Art Fry, faced a challenge. Art sang in his church’s choir and was frustrated by his bookmarks that kept falling out of his hymnal.
It struck him: what if he could use Silver’s weak adhesive to stick bookmarks to his pages without damaging them?
And that’s how the idea for Post-it Note was born!
Today, those little yellow sticky notes are a ubiquitous tool in offices, classrooms, and homes around the world.
The story of the Post-it Note reminds us that the journey to success is rarely a straight line. What may initially appear as a setback or failure might just be taking us on a detour, leading to a result far more meaningful than we had imagined.
To reach those results, here are a few things to keep in mind:
- Reframe the narrative: Instead of labeling an outcome as a “failure,” see it as “data” or “feedback.” This shift in perspective can reduce negative emotions and open your mind to potential solutions.
- Consult others: Silver’s weak adhesive might’ve remained an overlooked failure had Art Fry not seen its potential. Sometimes, an outside perspective can provide fresh insights.
- Analyze and adapt: Dive deeper into why something didn’t work out. Is there a pattern to your setbacks? If yes, what can you change in your approach?
Next time, whenever you encounter what seems like a failure or a roadblock, instead of getting disheartened, think — “This is not the final step. How can I use it to grow, learn and innovate?”