Learning from Failures
If you have read Matthew Syed’s earlier book, ‘Bounce: The Myth of Talent and the Power of Practice’, you will enjoy this one too. The essence of this book rests on the core premise that detailed independent investigation of our everyday goof-ups can prevent recurrences just as black box flight data analysis has dramatically reduced the incidence of airplane crashes. The message through this book is that if more data creates a better outcome, good evidence-based analysis in all areas of human behaviour should allow us to lift those blinders that prevent us from learning from our mistakes.
Failure is not personal, it's just that information is the thesis on which bulk of this book rests. According to Syed, we have to grapple with the fact that most people avoid taking responsibility for their failures. Whether that is because they are terrified of being blamed and censured or whether they have a narrative in their minds they simply cannot let go of, most people who screw up are either unwilling or unable to admit they made a mistake, much less to investigate the causes of the mistake.
To get a better grip of the concept, it will help if you have read Daniel Kahneman’s works because he wrote a whole book on all the cognitive biases that enable us to avoid dealing with reality. That aspect of Syed's book is a little disheartening because he illustrates how bad we are at learning from our mistakes, especially with the anecdotes that this book is laced with. For instance, the leading anecdote about the woman who died during a routine surgery because of her surgeons losing track of time is very disturbing. This is a book that is recommended to everyone— it is well written with good examples, which make you think.
Author
- Matthew Syed
Publisher
- Hodder & stoughton
Price
- Rs 399