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Lewis, the child inventor, waits while his invention warms up. It is a peanut butter and jelly dispenser, designed to portion evenly onto bread.
The switch clicks ON, followed by a hiss of compressed air. At first it doesn’t seem like the contraption is working…

Suddenly, with the force of a fire hose, peanut butter and jelly sprays everywhere (except the bread). Pressurized PB&J covers the table, the walls, and the rest of the people in the room.
Lewis is extremely frustrated, and the adults begin to yell at him, “You Failed!”
However, far from angry, they’re celebrating. They continue…
“…And it was awesome! Exceptional! Outstanding!”
“From failing you learn, from success not so much.”
The praise ends with the advice, “Keep moving forward!”

This is a great scene in the middle of the Disney animated feature Meet the Robinsons. And, a nice lesson for kids and adults alike.
The advice “from failing you learn, from success not so much” is golden.
Many organizations still punish for mistakes and setbacks. Mistakes cost money.
In fact, you hired me instead of the other candidates because of my track record. You selected me because of my experience and hope that I’ve made my mistakes elsewhere.
Smarter companies share the mistake and the lessons learned. Instead of fear of the noose, the lessons are let loose.
When things do go wrong what should you do? The following are bits of advice – or guideposts – are from the book “The Magic Of Thinking Big” by David Schwartz. Great tips to follow when you manage a project and behaviors to ask of your team to “salvage something from every setback.”

Five Guideposts to Turn Defeat Into Victory

1. Study setbacks to pave your way to success. When you lose, learn, and then go on to win next time.

2. Have the courage to be your own constructive critic. Seek out your faults and weaknesses then correct them. This makes you a professional.
3. Stop blaming luck. Research each setback. Find out what went wrong. Remember, blaming luck never got anyone where he wanted to go.
4. Blend persistence with experimentation. Stay with your goal but don’t beat your head against a stone wall. Try new approaches. Experiment.
5. Remember, there is a good side in every situation. Find it. See the good side and whip discouragement.

What techniques have you picked up that allow you to turn setbacks into progress? Does your company support mistake-makers? If so, how?
What’s neat about the movie, is the phrase “Keep Moving Forward” is actually a snippet from a Walt Disney quote…
“Around here, however, we don’t look backwards for very long. We keep moving forward, opening up new doors and doing new things, because we’re curious… And curiosity keeps leading us down new paths.” – Walt Disney
They do a neat job of celebrating this quote at the close of the movie before the credits roll.