Failure is just part of the culture of innovation. Accept it and become stronger
Albert Yu, Senior Vice President of Intel
If people never did silly things, nothing intelligent would ever happen
Ludwig Wittgenstein, Philosopher
The innermost mechanism of human progress is called failure. If it were not for all the fools trying to do the impossible - over and over again - we would still be living in caves... failure happens. Give people trust and it will happen more productively.
Jonas Ridderstrale and Kjell Nordstrom, Business Gurus
We should do something when people say it is crazy. If people say something is good, it means that someone else is already doing it.
Hajime Mitari, the President of Canon
The definition of a lousy product is one that has no enemies within the company
Arno Penzias, Bell Labs
It takes a lot of ruin to make the wealth of a great nation
Adam Smith
Technorati Tags: Emerging Church: Religion
Most of us are scared of failing its true. the world puts so much pressure on people to succeed......... Pass all those exams with A*s. Get a good job that gives you status and loads of dosh. Get an attractive partner, or even a string of different lovers. Get a house and a mortgage.Go on luxury holidays and get a flash car.Get good health and always appear to be happy and succeed at everything and never show any failure or weakness.Vaneer over the cracks.If you play by the world's rules the cracks will appear sooner or later and one day you will wake up and realise you are empty inside and life has no meaning.
What the world sees as success is so very different to what God counts as success.It was only when i lost everything the world counts as being a successful life that i truly discovered what really counts:Loving God, loving other people.and when i allowed myself to fail i learnt about loving myself.
Posted by: Sally C | 26/05/2007 at 22:53
Agreed Sally... but, what I find most amusing/sad (delete according to preference) is that The Church is desperate to buy into certain corporate models; departmentalism, CEOs, products, process and programmes, The all powerful chairperson, marketing, image over substance etc. at a time when the business world is embracing vulnerable leadership, hot desking, entrepreneurial values, risk taking, customer participation, social networking, economy of soul, the need for failure etc. even "spirituality" (however supreficially!)
Posted by: Mark | 26/05/2007 at 23:43
Yes that is sad indeed. the question is why is THE CHURCH desperate to buy into such models ? My experience is that my Church is trying to change itself to appeal to outsiders but its going about it in the wrong ways.......
Posted by: Sally C | 28/05/2007 at 22:24
Mark, I clicked on 'comment' to say how much I liked the quote by Jonas Ridderstrale and Kjell Nordstrom. The line about fools trying to do the impossible just cries out to be built into a liturgy.
One of the issues at our annual Grace weekend recently was about how we can make it easier for new people to risk taking part in our worship by honouring the fact that they have stepped outside of their comfort zones. Failure in and of of itself isn't a problem, but fear of failure and the criticism it brings can be disabling. It's really important the emerging communities develop a culture in which its OK to be a fool in search of the impossible.
As for your discussion with Sally C, isn't this another case of the church aping the wider world, being slightly less critical of what it copies than it should be, and lagging 10 years behind?
Posted by: Dean Ayres | 01/06/2007 at 12:26
Great quotes...especially the Intel one. I used to work for Intel and was impressed by Andy Grove, C.O.O.
Posted by: Richard Hovey | 24/06/2007 at 22:25