Creativity and failure. The best of friends.

Mistakes aren't the end of the world, much as it might feel like it.

We’ve all been there.

Hit “send” only to immediately realise the presentation you’d lovingly crafted was not attached to the email at all.

That it was, in fact, a picture of your cat sent to the board of directors.

You desperately wish for the ground to swallow you up. Or that you could disintegrate right there on the spot and leave no trace of your failure upon the Earth.

You might as well grab your coat, for the world has now realised that you’ve committed the worst sin of all sins.

A mistake.

Let me stop you there

For all the guilt, shame, and embarrassment you feel in the immediate aftermath (and for several years following – they often keep me awake at night), a mistake is not the worst thing you could ever do.

Failure is essential to success.

And it doesn’t mean you can’t do it – whatever “it” is. Launch a new business. Start a job. Write a presentation. Create a new project.

Failure just means you need to refine. Adapt. Improve.

After all, if you aren’t failing, you aren’t challenging yourself.

If you aren’t challenging yourself, you aren’t learning.

You need to fail in order to succeed and to build your creative confidence.

You need to fail to learn how to be more creative for the future.

Mistakes aren’t the end of the world – despite what you might think

When you attempt things and fail, you’re learning. You’re growing. You’re getting better. You’re improving.

It’s a necessary part of the process to creative success.

• Sir James Dyson built 5,126 prototypes before creating the bagless vacuum cleaner we know today.
• Michael Jordan was cut from his high school basketball team and has missed over 9,000 shots in his career.
• And J.K. Rowling was rejected 12 times before her Harry Potter manuscript was picked up.

Giving up after being knocked down could mean you miss out on the success of your ideas, projects, and beliefs.

The answer is always “no” if you never try.

And should you fail on the first attempt?

Adjust your approach and try again.

So, what do you do if you're stuck in a rut and can't figure out a way forward?

If your marketing efforts have missed the mark?

You've failed but can't see how - or where - to adjust?

It might be that you simply need to discover your brand story.

Ready to see how?

Contact us and discover your story.