"Fail as Fast as Possible"

by Mohammad Afaq

Posted: 13 years ago 40 replies

PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT

Alright this is my second thread for today and then I will stop. I promise

I want to share something that I believe is responsible for my small success online with all the people who are struggling out there.

Ready? Here it is:

"Fail as fast as possible" ~Kim Roach

I know it sounds weird but if you think about it it's not.

Let me explain.

Success and failure are just results of any action.

For example, you take action and build a website. You spend time marketing the website, building backlinks, writing content etc. All of that is action.

Did that website make money? Now that's the result.

If the website didn't make any money, you failed and now you need to learn from this experience and move on to the next project quick.

If it did make money then congratulations. Now you need to scale it up and make more money quickly.

Speed of implementation is an extremely important factor when it comes to succeeding online.

Pull you ideas out of your head and make them reality. Get it done now and always keep in mind. "Fail as fast as possible"

That's it. I'm outta here

EDIT: Guys Kim Roach is one of the best warriors out there so don't forget to check out her threads at http://www.warriorforum.com/search.php?searchid=6128588

#fail as fast as possible

excuzemee 13 years ago

fail faster = learning faster.

the faster you fail the faster you learn.

if you are afraid to fail.... you won't learn. if you don't learn, you stay where you are and stop growing.

= dead in the water, fermenting.

Great post!
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- foxanthony 13 years ago
  
  That's what I'm doing. I'm failing like crazy!
  
  Seriously, I'm getting closer and closer to success everyday.
  
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Vyliss

13 years ago

Problem is failure is something 95% of the ppl in the world are afraid of.

Even just to fail ONCE at something is too scary of a concept, so they don't bother to try at all.

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Roy Penrod

13 years ago

Originally Posted by Vyliss

Problem is failure is something 95% of the ppl in the world are afraid of.

Even just to fail ONCE at something is too scary of a concept, so they don't bother to try at all.

Yeah, that's very common.

What really helped me start taking action was shifting the way I thought about the concepts of success and failure.

I started looking at them in the terms of "did I get the results I wanted or didn't I?"

It's not success or failure ... it's just feedback ... data I can use to get closer to the results I want.

It's a simple shift in focus, but it really helped me start taking more action. It helps me avoid the whole value judgement thing of "failure = bad".

Most people call it failure ... I call it experience.

Great topic, Mohammad.

Thanks

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Kenster

13 years ago

I would also add...

Fail as small as possible.

Being in the CPA world, this is even more true. You want to test small, fail small, fail often, and then when you find that little gem, you go crazy scaling the freak out of it.

But you need to have tough skin because most things are failures unfortunately.

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kjfuller1 13 years ago

Interesting.. good advice.
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- storge 13 years ago
  
  Failure is always my teacher and not my enemy,it make me become a life long learner. I did not fail,i just did not do it right. Learn from it,do it again and again and again until i get it right most of the times. Most people did not do it right the first time,so did Thomas Edison,the great inventor who got it right after 10000 times.
  
  Thanks
  
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CrhisD

13 years ago

Originally Posted by Kenster

Great advice, thanks

Thanks

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excuzemee

13 years ago

Here is a quote I see every now and again that exemplifies exactly how failure works for you.

If you don’t make mistakes, you’re not working on hard enough problems. And that’s a big mistake.—Frank Wilczek

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IntelliCollect

13 years ago

Hi Mohammad,

Thanks so much for your thoughtful post! Failing to ACT is much more debilitating than failure after ACTION.

The problem arises when we believe that failure will always arise. We need to believe that we can learn from our failures and inevitably reach our goals. However, if we stay immobilized, it will be impossible to attain our objectives.

Thanks
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TheWealthSquad

13 years ago

You really have to go deeper into it than just fail fast.

Anyone can fail fast. The key is to LEARN as you go.

Fail Fast should really be called Test Fast.

I wrote a full blog post on it

Fail Fast

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tranndee

13 years ago

You really have to go deeper into it than just fail fast.

Anyone can fail fast. The key is to LEARN as you go.

Fail Fast should really be called Test Fast.

I wrote a full blog post on it

That's where I get a little stuck--learning. I great at the failing part (:>), getting better at the failing faster, but is there such a thing as failing so fast you aren't picking up the lessons you need to learn? I have to keep slowing down to figure out how improve the things that seem to be working. Or is all that attention to detail in the review process--checking pageviews, bounce rates, CTR, CPC, etc.--things that can be backburnered while failing faster?

Thanks

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foxanthony 13 years ago

"But won't people laugh at me if I fail?", says the person who's looking for an excuse to do nothing.
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- Kenster 13 years ago
  
  Originally Posted by foxanthony
  
  "But won't people laugh at me if I fail?", says the person who's looking for an excuse to do nothing.
  
  Which is a lot of people unfortunately. Some people even work harder coming up with a reason why they shouldnt do something then coming up with a reason they should.
  
  At the end of the day, the go-getter and the hustler are the ones that get the worm!
  
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irishpolyglot 13 years ago

Agree 100%
A friend of mine, Karol Gajda (from ridiculouslyextraordinary.com) said:

I’ve failed more times than you. That’s why I’ve succeeded more as well.
Your mission is simple.
Go fail.
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Vyliss 13 years ago

The word "fail" is a really negative word to be putting in anyone's head, even if you're really trying to encourage people to take action.

I'd prefer to be persistently stubborn to succeed then to expect tons of failure before I succeed. When you expect to fail (which is what this post is advocating), then you WILL fail, and fail, and fail. Why do that to yourself when you can expect to succeed, and maybe only fail once instead of over and over again?
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LetsGoViral 13 years ago

Don't worry. I keep failing alright. Still haven't run out of things to fail though
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Johny2000 13 years ago

100% agree

I like it..
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helenaldin 13 years ago

I agree...with one added extra.

Fail fast...but learn from that failure too!

Failing is tough and painful. But if you don't learn WHY you failed and HOW to make it more successful next time, you're doomed to repeat the process over and over again.
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Not So New 13 years ago

Personally I don't like the word "Fail"

It's an ongoing journey, so you need to see what works and what doesn't and go with the stuff that works the best

Sid
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- Roy Penrod 13 years ago
  
  I agree with you, Sid.
  
  I think it was Jack Canfield or Mark Victor Hansen that used the analogy of a homing missile.
  
  He said that a homing missile works by comparing a picture of the current situation with the ideal situation and then correcting its course when it doesn't match.
  
  The takeaway is that a homing missile is off-target about 90% of the time, but it still hits the target in the end because it's constantly correcting its course.
  
  Thanks
  
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- rosievip 13 years ago
  
  I agree with you. One must continue towards the goal. If one way doesn't work then that is not the path. Try another.
  
  I also do not like the word fail because that may seem to be the focus.
  
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David Ford 13 years ago

My father used to say to me when I was a kid. "If at first you dont succeed try try again, learn from the experience and do it different next time"

Napoleon Hill also famously quoted

"Before success comes in any man's life, he's sure to meet with much temporary defeat and, perhaps some failures. When defeat overtakes a man, the easiest and the most logical thing to do is to quit. That's exactly what the majority of men do"

Just about says it all dose it not.....
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ina696 13 years ago

Somehow, that's exactly what I needed to hear. Thank you.

I've been stuck in the "paralysis of analysis" for years ...

Ina
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he_who_brings_order 13 years ago

Now, I agree with you Mohammad that we need to test, analyze results and give up if we do not produce the outcome we desire. I agree that we should try several times. However, it also depends on the type of business.

If we are talking about the blog, you need a little more time then if we are talking about selling a product, such sites may fail or succeed in the short term. For example in order to build a functional and profitable forum you will need much more time, effort, patience and knowledge than if you want to build a blog.

I want to say that different types of websites will become profitable with varying speed...
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aiza.bb 13 years ago

I am strong agree and believe to that quotations, it is not bad to say "i fail" but at least you did your best, there is just a fact that, that is not yet your time to succeed. Fail as Fast as Possible can be a great thought for every individual, but you must have make sense to it not literary meaning, dig the real meaning of the words.

Fail Fast As Possible is wrote by the best writer Mr. David Vallieres
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- pradiprg Banned 13 years ago
  
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  OmarBriones 13 years ago
  
  This is definitely one of the most important things you can do for yourself! So many people, including I, have a mental block and a fear of failure or not being perfect...
  
  Don't focus on perfection... focus on mastery... just do your best, and keep improving as you go... you're gonna suck at first, but through time and practice you'll get better and better.
  
  ~Omar
  
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JustinDupre 13 years ago

I agree with you 100% the best way to learn is trial and error. Great advice!
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PeterDunin 13 years ago

I agree totally my friend,when you get knocked down you've got to get back up!
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rparikh 13 years ago

If you are not ready to fail,you can not grow.I think this is the most important mindset in IM world.
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sparckyz 13 years ago

I've failed so much; i should now be the most successful guy in the world!
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- Kenster 13 years ago
  
  Originally Posted by sparckyz
  
  I've failed so much; i should now be the most successful guy in the world!
  
  Haha, but did you work your absolute hardest at whatever you "failed at"? If so, then I don't have any good advice except to keep working your hardest and eventually something will hit. If not, then it wasn't a true failure
  
  And that was a more general statement to make a point...not necessarily directed at you!!!
  
  Thanks
  
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- CrhisD 13 years ago
  
  Originally Posted by sparckyz
  
  I've failed so much; i should now be the most successful guy in the world!
  
  Did you learn anything from them?
  
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DanteIlluai 13 years ago

I definitely agree with the sentiment, however, I think it could be taken a step further.

When a person really understands the concept that you touched on, they will see why 'failure' is a silly concept.

There are no mistakes. Every time I realize I made a mistake, what I really just realized is that I have learned something new. 'Mistakes' merely remind me that I am progressing. In light of this, I really find myself scratching my head at why everyone holds themselves back by avoid making 'mistakes'.

They are really, quite accurately, avoiding that which lets them know they have advanced. If they had not advanced, they would not be able to see what could be improved in their former efforts.

Personally, 'Mistakes' are what keep me going every day. How else would I know that my efforts are paying off?
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- SP ESP 13 years ago
  
  So long as you take action, don't worry if you are not successful straight away - at least you have learned what doesn't work or what you can do differently next time.
  
  You are right Vyliss that concentrating on the word fail may likely cause your failure. I like Roy's idea - experience.
  
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mistermint

13 years ago

Failure is not an option...

There is no need to fail - Your just running in a negative equity situation for a while like Pan Am was

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Mohammad Afaq

13 years ago

Guess what, that's the problem. Failure IS an option and it's not a bad thing.

Edit: you think you will never fail in life or IM?

If yes then listen up because here's a surprise. You will period.

At some stage of you life or your IM career, YOU WILL FAIL. You will do something that won't work out. You will get into a JV partnership that won't work. You will fail to keep that #1 ranking in google.

Failure is just a part of life. When an infant starts learning to walk, he falls down. He gets back up again and falls down again. He keeps repeating this cycle and all of a sudden he starts walking and then it's a subconscious thing.

So failure is an option. You won't hit a home run or won't break for a touchdown at every shot or play. So keep failure an option and when you do fail (and you will), get back up and try again instead of just quitting it altogether.

That was the point of my post. I wasn't being negative.

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mistermint

13 years ago

Guess what, that's the problem. Failure IS an option and it's not a bad thing.

"edit" It's not an option because, it's part of the learning curve and therfore is not failure just a step in your online education...same as extensive testing..

At some stage of you life or your IM career, YOU WILL FAIL. You will do something that won't work out. You will get into a JV partnership that won't work. You will fail to keep that #1 ranking in google.

Yes, you will lose the Nr 1 postion even, you worked until your eyes bleed to get it, for several reasons:

1. Another marketer will reverse engineer how you got there.
2. A competing website owner may well have deep pockets and try to dislodge you..

I could go on..

Failure is just a part of life. When an infant starts learning to walk, he falls down. He gets back up again and falls down again. He keeps repeating this cycle and all of a sudden he starts walking and then it's a subconscious thing.

Yes, he/she is learning but, not failing...

So failure is an option. You won't hit a home run or won't break for a touchdown at every shot or play. So keep failure an option and when you do fail (and you will), get back up and try again instead of just quitting it altogether.

Again, you did not fail, you did your best and you learnt even more..

That was the point of my post. I wasn't being negative.

I think you meant well and not being negative..

Quite a lot of IM's simply give up though, it doesn't mean they failed..

You have to define failure really..

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Mike Murphy 13 years ago

It's super important to pause after the fail and sort out what worked from what didn't. If you just fail and then run off to the next thing, you'll continue to fail far longer than you should or will want to.

The key is to always be moving forward no matter how small the steps.
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sethczerepak 13 years ago

Great post
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"Fail as Fast as Possible"

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