The Myth of the Magic Bullet: 7 Things to Do When Progress is Slow
Progress is like learning to walk. You stumble forward, then you skin your knee.
There’s no quick fix to the challenges of leadership. And thinking there is makes stumbling harder.
The path forward is iterative. Proposed solutions don’t magically work on the first try, or the tenth.
A desire for easy solutions invites disappointment.
Failure:
Edison said, “I didn’t fail 1,000 times. The light bulb was an invention with 1,000 steps.”
You believed your approach was useful. But your good idea was irrelevant. Failing to make progress – when you hoped things would change – feels worse than stagnation.
Learning what doesn’t work is unglamorous, but necessary.
When you stop doing what isn’t working you have energy to try something new.
Stupid:
You never intentionally choose stupid, but ignorance makes stupid seem smart. You did the thing you thought best. It didn’t work.
Henry Ford nailed it when he said, “Failure provides the opportunity to begin again, more intelligently.”
More intelligently:
Failure makes you more intelligent only if you…
#1. Face forward when progress is slow. Remember your aspiration to serve others.
#2. Adapt. Stop investing in strategies that aren’t working. Your bright idea didn’t work. Try another.
You’re better able to move forward when you stop hoping in something that isn’t working.
#3. Take another step. Don’t throw in the towel.
Adaptive grit eventually looks like wisdom.
#4. Go with your highest point of clarity. Forget perfect solutions.
You have enough clarity to take the next step.
#5. Forgive yourself. The best way to begin again is to stop beating yourself down.
#6. Find a friend, mentor, or coach.
It’s foolish to face tough challenges alone.
#7. Stay curious.
Bonus: Bring in an outsider to expand your approach and encourage your team.
Progress is often unspectacular.
How do you keep going when progress is slow?
Great post this morning! So many great bits of wisdom throughout. Hard work is absolutely a key to success. But hard work without intelligent choices just wears you out. Learning from what doesn’t work AND trying a different approach is what drives learning and growth.
Thanks Jay. Talk about bits of wisdom, “But hard work without intelligent choices just wears you out.”
Your sentence speaks to me. I think many of us have buckled down, but without reflecting on our choices. It’s exhausting and discouraging.
“How do you keep going when progress is slow?” By using the fear of being the slow animal that’s culled out!
Most organisations aren’t interested in the steps, the progress or the process. They care about the result, and the impact on the bottom line of having more than one go at things.
Thanks Mitch. Although some might look down on fear as motivation. it’s very powerful. For me, fear of failure, has on occasion motivated me to put in extra time. I think some fear of failure is fear of losing respect. Perhaps some fear is about losing a paycheck.
I’m not sure fear as motivation is healthy over the long-term. But it is powerful.
Holy cow, did I need to hear this message today! I work with physicians and other healthcare providers on electronic documentation and ordering. No solution is ever perfect or easy to find. It sometimes feels like death by a thousand cuts and the process of getting things done can be long and arduous. We tend not to look at trial and error cycles as progressive steps of a process. It seems that the medical culture looks at everything in terms of success vs. failure. Love the Edison quote and since I work in NJ I will definitely be using this quote this week!
Thanks.
Dan, Fabulous as always!
The reality of picking oneself up repeatedly through life’s lesson “is golden”!
I think I just found what I knew had to be done but needed to see it in B&W — thank you for simply saying it —“When you stop doing what isn’t working you have energy to try something new.”
How do you keep going when progress is slow? Being a visionary can be a great motivator. For example Martin Luther King had a dream/vision. This kept him moving towards his goals despite all obstacles.
This post reminds me the whole idea behind process improvements. For me it always starts with a problem/process that may arise in your work location. If it doesn’t work, don’t kee pushing it through as the status quo. Think of new ways but don’t be afraid to get it wrong the first try. I think that’s a big reason people don’t bother tackling systemic large-scale issues. It’s daunting. I like the recommendations of seeking advice, ‘facing-forward’ to help with achieving results.
These are wonderful things to do when you think progress is slow especially as a leader. My favorite one is to go with #5 “Forgive yourself. The best way to begin is to stop beating yourself down” We all make mistakes. We have forgive and let it go, or it will consume our motivation, energy and time. These are some ideas that I will pull into my toolbox for a self-evaluation that I periodically conduct. How do I keep going when progress is slow? I re-evaluate myself to include personally and professionally to see if I need to adjust meet my goals or if they have changed too. I think this is my way of trying to remain grounded.