You will never stub your toe standing still. The faster you go, the more chance there is of stubbing your toe, but the more chance you have of getting somewhere.
Charles KetteringRead
The biggest job we have is to teach a newly hired employee how to fail intelligently. We have to train him to experiment over and over and to keep on trying and failing until he learns what will work.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote emphasizes the importance of teaching new employees to embrace failure as a part of the learning process.
In this quote, Charles Kettering highlights the crucial responsibility of leaders and educators to instill in new employees a mindset that views failure not as a setback, but as a valuable opportunity for growth and understanding. By encouraging experimentation and resilience, organizations can foster an environment where innovation thrives and individuals learn from their mistakes, ultimately leading to greater success.
Themes
FailureLearningInnovationExperimentationGrowth
In practice
Example use cases
In a team meeting, I shared this quote to encourage everyone to take risks and embrace potential failures.
More from Charles Kettering
All quotes →It is the 'follow through' that makes the great difference between ultimate success and failure, because it is so easy to stop.
Charles KetteringRead
When I was research head of General Motors and wanted a problem solved, I'd place a table outside the meeting room with a sign: "Leave slide rules here." If I didn't do that, I'd find someone reaching for his slide rule. Then he'd be on his feet saying, "Boss, you can't do it."
Charles KetteringRead
A research problem is not solved by apparatus; it is solved in a man's head.
Charles KetteringRead
My interest is in the future because I am going to spend the rest of my life there.
Charles KetteringRead
I often say that research is a way of finding out what you are going to do when you can't keep on doing what you are doing now.
Charles KetteringRead
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