Failure. It’s a word most of us try to avoid. Yet the truth is, no meaningful progress ever happens without it. The most effective leaders, whether they’re running a farm, small business, or community organisation, are those who’ve learned to fail forward. They turn mistakes into momentum, setbacks into stepping stones, and doubts into determination.
In regional and rural Australia, where every decision can carry personal and financial weight, it’s tempting to play it safe. But safety rarely leads to innovation. Failing forward is about taking calculated risks, being comfortable being uncomfortable by trialling something new, learning from what does and doesn’t work, and using that experience to grow.
What does failing forward mean? To “fail forward” means to learn fast and move on smarter. It’s the ability to turn each setback into a lesson rather than a label. Failing forward doesn’t mean being reckless or careless, it means having the courage to try, to learn, and to keep going. Leadership expert John C. Maxwell puts it well: “The quality of people who achieve things, is their perception of and response to failure.”
Those who fail forward don’t see failure as final; they see it as feedback
Why failing forward matters for leaders. In leadership, it’s not about being perfect, it’s about being purposeful. How a leader responds to mistakes sets the tone for everyone else. When leaders model failing forward, they:
Build trust and authenticity by admitting when something didn’t work. This makes you relatable and real. People respect honesty more than image.
Encourage innovation. Teams that fear failure play small. Teams that feel safe to experiment are more creative and adaptable.
Develop resilience. Every setback is an opportunity to strengthen resilience and self-belief.
Create a learning culture. Failing forward turns “Who stuffed up?” into “What can we learn?”
When a leader responds to failure with structured critical reflection led by curiosity, instead of criticism, it changes the whole team environment. Staff stop hiding mistakes and start learning from them. That’s how progress happens.
History is littered with leaders who failed forward, who stumbled their way to success:
- Thomas Edison made over 10,000 attempts before inventing a working light bulb. He famously said, “I didn’t fail, I found 10,000 ways that didn’t work.”
- James Dyson went through 5,126 failed prototypes over 15 years while developing his new vacuum. He has been quoted as saying “Failure is so much more interesting because you learn from it. Success is made from 99 per cent failure.”
- Walt Disney was once fired for “lacking imagination.” His early ventures went broke. Yet he persisted, building one of the most creative companies in history. He often told his staff to “Always trial and error. Try new ideas. Search for something that makes us better.”
- Col Sanders had his unique fried chicken recipe rejected over 1,000 times before he founded what is now called KFC at the age of 62. “One has to remember to treat failure as a stepping stone to something better.”
These leaders succeeded because they learned from their setbacks and refused to let failure define them. They didn’t fall backward into blame; they failed forward into growth.
Some practical ways to fail forward. Failing forward isn’t just a catch phrase, it’s a skill that must be practised to be acquired. Here are five ways to apply it in leadership, business, and life:
1. Redefine failure: Stop seeing failure as the end of the story. It’s simply information. Ask:
- What did this experience teach me?
- What can I do differently next time?
By reframing failure as feedback, you turn frustration into insight
2. Create Psychological Safety: For teams to fail forward, they need to feel safe enough to speak up. The leader encourages open conversations about what worked and what didn’t. Key is to role model and appreciate frank and respectful feedback, whilst recognising initiative, even when results fall short.
Teams that admit mistakes outperform those that hide from or deny them
3. Reflect and debrief: After any major effort, such as a harvest, big project, or new system implementation, take time to reflect and debrief. Explore:
- What went well?
- What didn’t?
- What is one learning or improvement we could adapt next time?
These simple reviews build a culture of continuous learning
- Share your own failures: As a leader, your willingness to admit your own missteps gives others permission to be open about theirs. When you say, “I got that wrong, but here’s what I learned,” you model growth and vulnerability which always builds a leader’s credibility.
Leaders are never perfect.
Stories of how you recovered after a setback speaks volumes for your leadership credibility
5. Encourage calculated risk: Progress requires experimentation. Allow your team to test small ideas before scaling them up. Celebrate effort and learning, not just outcomes.
Remember, people who never fail are usually people who never try
Finally failing forward in the bush is a must and carries a big leadership weight. When you run a family farm, small business, or local enterprise, failure feels personal. But those same challenges also build incredible resilience. The farmer who trials a new crop will learn invaluable lessons on what to improve next year. The local café owner who invests in digital marketing will over time perfect what works to grow sales. The council manager who tests a new community engagement idea, tweaks it, to help strengthen community engagement, will always be seen to add value to the community. The key is to try! Doing nothing always means nothing new will happen.
Leadership Lesson
Failing forward is refusing to be defined by setbacks and instead using them as a catalyst for progress.
This is a mindset that must be role modelled, encouraged and championed by a leader to foster both creativity and resilience into a team.
Facta Non Verba – Deeds Not Words
