What worked? -- What Didn't? -- Whats Next?

One of the common denominators of successful people is their ability to persevere when things don't go as planned. Effective people don't allow themselves to get bogged down in feelings that don't serve their purpose.

On the other hand, ineffective, unsuccessful people allow their emotions to rule rather than their rational and objective nature. They lament what happened or what didn't and become victims rather than masters of their circumstances.

We all have disappointments. We all suffer setbacks. If we're going to attempt anything worthwhile, we're going to experience failure. The mature—and ultimately successful person—sees failure as part of success. When one method fails, they try again with a new one. Sometimes it takes many attempts.

In my coaching/consulting work, I see all too often the tendency to fix blame instead of fix problems. Rather than looking at challenges rationally and objectively, emotions are allowed to dictate the process.

They're unable to make corrections without invalidation. Something goes wrong and they want to blame. Profit isn't reached fast enough and someone needs to be fired. There's never a shortage of people or things on which to blame the failure.

I suggest a different approach. It's a process called, "What Worked, What Didn't, What's Next?"

This practice works whether you're dealing with a business, a relationship, a project or your life. The key is to evaluate often, objectively, and then to move on.

And the more often and impartially you measure and evaluate, the better it works. It's just feedback—and feedback is neither positive nor negative. It's simply information. I call feedback the "Breakfast of Champions". Looking at what happened with a healthy degree of detachment allows us to make better decisions.

What Worked?

What actions moved us toward our objective? What's worth repeating? What felt good? What created excellence?

Acknowledge your successes. If it's a big one, celebrate it. Praise your own as well as the efforts of others. When you focus on what worked, you begin with positive energy. And you create momentum toward solutions.