Sometimes a story is full of lessons without having a well-defined core.  There are many players, and the successful have a positive attitude.  This trend supersedes mistakes, errors, and even bad luck.  We look at one of those complex situations in this episode.  There are many mistakes made, and they all are overcome by being focused on success rather than listing ways we can fail.

A Positive Attitude In The Face Of Adversity

This story does not start with a situation and players that lead one to expect success.  On the contrary, this seems like a recipe for disaster.  Likewise, abject failure would not be a surprise and was likely expected by many.  The difference-maker in this story is that positive attitude.  A few people decided it was worth giving a full and honest effort to the cause.  Those decisions made the difference between success and failure.

The Lesson Learned

I have to admit that I did not have high hopes for this situation.  I was often considering ways to limit damage and craft contingency plans.  Nevertheless, I pushed aside those doubts and got the team to decide to give it a chance.  That was all it took.  We were pleasantly surprised at how our challenge turned into a shining success.  Likewise, we found a sort of gem in the rough that sparkled brightly once it was polished up.  Therefore, sometimes a challenging path is the key to glowing success.  Do not be afraid to step into such challenges with confidence and optimism.

If you like this season, you will probably like Scott Adams’ book, “How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big: Kind of the Story of My Life.”

Rob Broadhead

Rob is a founder of, and frequent contributor to, Develpreneur. This includes the Building Better Developers podcast. He is also a lifetime learner as a developer, designer, and manager of software solutions. Rob is the founder of RB Consulting and has managed to author a book about his family experiences and a few about becoming a better developer. In his free time, he stays busy raising five children (although they have grown into adults). When he has a chance to breathe, he is on the ice playing hockey to relax or working on his ballroom dance skills.

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