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10 signs of failure
Wednesday, 12 August 2009 05:12 Hrs
seldomlogical.com / articles / 10 signs of failure

Summary While writing up an upcoming article on "failure" [0], I realised I'd come up with a
mini article on failure. Here is a list of warning signs indicating, you might be about to fail at a
given task.

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Seldom logical | 10 signs of failure http://seldomlogical.com/2009/08/12/10-signs-of-failure

10 signs of failure

Here is a list of warning signs indicating you might be about to fail at a given task. I define
failure loosely as the "inability to complete a do-able task in a reasonable amount of time".
Often we fail without realising why. Recognition of one or more signs of failure might give you
the time needed to triage the problem before it becomes fatal. The 10 signs of failure include:

Discomfort

Not failing requires working hard on a regular basis. It's uncomfortable because you have to do
things you don't want to do. If you try to avoid all discomfort, you might be limiting how hard
you can work. If things are too comfortable, it could also mean you are beginning to fail.

Distraction

If you can't focus on a given task, you are by definition distracted. Distraction can be the
result of interruptions [1] or trying to do many things at once. It can also be symptomatic of
being demoralised or lacking motivation. Take a mental note of how many times you are
disrupted in thought or action. Distraction is a measure of not working. Not working is a
precursor to failure.

Poor morale

Low morale colours your thinking. Small problems becomes an insurmountable hurdles. The
trick is not to get demoralised in the first place. If your moral is low, don't let declining morale
become a downwards spiral failure. [2] Being demoralised is a key indicator of impending
failure. Be on the lookout for low morale.

Motivation

You have to really want to do something to get it completed. Not having enough motivation to
stick to a task leads to distraction. Lack of motivation means the hurdles you face [3] take
longer, than they should. A lack of motivation is a warning sign for poor moral. If you detect
lack of motivation it's time to inject some energy back into the system to get things moving
again. Motivational energy can come in many forms, one quick hack is to try and find a "fresh
inspiration". [4]

Fear

What we fear, be it perceived or actual can result in poor morale and lack of motivation. Fear
causes you to fail because it replaces action with in-action. Controlling fear is a difficult
problem. It often manifests itself irrationally for this reason it's difficult to control. [5]
Understanding what makes you fearful is a sign of potential failure. Understanding the warning
signs of fear may help you conquer it.

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Speed

Some things are required to be done in a measured amount of time. If you are not fast enough,
you will fail. If the task is do-able and you are slipping, are you working hard enough?; are you
distracted or have poor morale? Do you lack motivation? Are you fearful? The lack of progress
could be any one of the above. It could also be your response to stress. You could be choking.

Choking

For any given task stress, can cause neutralise competence by forcing you to revert back to
implicit (learning) rather than explicit (learnt) responses. [6] By any means choking occurs
more with the competent and seasoned rather than the beginner. If you become aware you are
taking more time to do things or having difficulty you could be choking. [7]

Milestones

Achieving milestones requires effort. At the end of a milestone a small amount of energy is
required to be input to start the new milestone. If you don't you lose the momentum of
completing the milestone and replace it with lethargy of starting from scratch. [8]

Stubbornness

Flexibility is an asset. If you are too stubborn and refuse to be flexible it can result in poor
decisions or an unrecoverable mistake . Stubbornness can be thought of as another form of
fear. The inability to take another course of action because of the unknown result. It could also
be an unwillingness to work hard. Stubbornness might also be a sign of stress and choking.

Mistakes

It's entirely possible to fail because of circumstances beyond your control. Sometimes things
go wrong through no fault of your own. Are you flexible enough for a "plan B" alternative? Will
you be unable to correct the mistake due to fear? Will you choke? Will you find an alternative
solution in time?

No doubt there are more signals of failure. Some of the signs of failure might seem
obvious,others you might not even be aware of. So if you feel things are not quite right, make
a quick mental check of the "10 signs" and avoid failure.

Reference

[0] I'm looking at individual failure, not team failure which involves a different set of problems.
I'm fascinated by the topic of failure because in high-tech software Startups 19/20 will probably
fail. Why? The "10 signs of failure" is one of a number of articles I'll be writing on the "dark
side" of Startups. The image I've used is from the film of the William Golding book, "Lord of
the Flies". The original image is located at www.flickr.com/photos/bootload/2576325005/ and is

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Seldom logical | 10 signs of failure http://seldomlogical.com/2009/08/12/10-signs-of-failure

also part of a flickr set called "Taming the dogs of code". [Accessed Wednesday, August 12,
2009] www.flickr.com/photos/bootload/sets/72157605526601670/

[1] The kind of distraction I'm thinking of here is "Continuous partial attention", (CPA) coined
by Linda Stone. You can follow @LindaStone on twitter at twitter.com/LindaStone or read
more about CPA at www.lindastone.net/

[2] A downwards spiral failure often happens when people get lost in the bush. They get
demoralised, give up and wait to die.

[3] And there will be hurdles to overcome.

[4] Just should think of motivation as a force to keep you moving past hurdles. Just as you
add energy to push a marble up a slope to overcome potential energy hill, you should use
motivation to push you through hurdles to avoid poor morale.

[5] One solution is to be aware of the physical signs of fear. Then act quickly when you are at
your most rational. Understand that fear gives you an edge because you can use it to "temper"
overconfidence.

[6] A twitter message I sent to @jonoxer (John Oxer) twitter.com/jonoxer "... "Head + brick
wall = pain" is it hacker choke? ~ www.gladwell.com/2000/2000_08_21_a_choking.htm
#gladwell #art #failure ..." In the article Gladwell explains the neurological reasons for choking
and the difference between panic and choking. [Accessed Wednesday, August 12, 2009]
twitter.com/bootload/status/3170939361

[7] @jonoxer (John Oxer) replied when sitting for 5hours and not getting anywhere:
"@bootload Fascinating distinction between choking and panicking, I hadn't thought of it that
way. I think I choked." [Accessed Wednesday, August 12, 2009] twitter.com/jonoxer/status
/3175473665

[8] I suspect adding a bit more motivational energy is required to overcome the post-milestone
slump.

Thanks to Pip Lincolne (@meetmeatmikes) for reading over the draft.

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Peter Renshaw Copyright 2008 creative commons license.

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