The Mistake is in the Repetition

A note to young leaders.

Last month, I co-presented at a forum of young entrepreneurs alongside a good friend of mine.

My friend introduced himself as a “master of mistakes”, recounting five painful lessons including losing $1.0 million in his first startup.

When he finished his presentation, I offered this perspective:

These are not mistakes. They are not even failures. They are failed experiments.

A mistake is a failed experiment from which you fail to learn – and are thus condemned to repeat.

A mistake is only a mistake if you commit it twice. The mistake is in the repetition. And a mistake oft repeated is even worse: it’s an addiction.

Don’t scold yourself for failed experiments. That’s how you learn. Praise yourself for that.

Scold yourself for committing the same mistake more than once.