Failure is an option: How learning from setbacks can lead to success

The inspiring expression, "failure is not an option" reportedly evolved from a statement by Jerry C. Bostick, a flight controller who helped bring the space-stranded astronauts of Apollo 13 safely back to earth. While the mindset behind it — to never give up — still applies, the adage itself does not fit the innovative, mutable environment most businesswomen face today, according to entrepreneur Rita Davenport. Davenport was speaking at the NAWBO/Wells Fargo Trailblazers Award luncheon.

The inspiring expression, "failure is not an option" reportedly evolved from a statement by Jerry C. Bostick, a flight controller who helped bring the space-stranded astronauts of Apollo 13 safely back to earth. Asked afterward if he and the other NASA flight controllers panicked as the doomed moon mission fell apart, Bostick is quoted as saying, "No, when bad things happened, we just calmly laid out all the options, and failure was not one of them.

We never panicked, and we never gave up on finding a solution." Screenwriters turned this into "failure is not an option." The tagline worked in Apollo 13, the movie starring Tom Hanks, and has since been relentlessly appropriated by everyone from President George W. Bush to middle-school soccer coaches. While the mindset behind it — to never give up — still applies, the adage itself does not fit the innovative, mutable environment most businesswomen face today, according to Rita Davenport.

Failure: critical developmental stage

Davenport is a prolific producer: a millionaire entrepreneur who's been an award-winning talk-show host, cookbook author, nationally recognized speaker, school teacher, skin-care consultant and time management expert. Currently, Davenport is a corporate executive, the president of Arbonne, a network marketing company that sells skin-care products. Arbonne is based in Irvine, Calif. Davenport was speaking at the NAWBO/Wells Fargo Trailblazers Award luncheon.

Founded in 1975, NAWBO (National Association of Women Business Owners) is a non-profit organization for women entrepreneurs. Its mission is supporting and promoting economic growth of women in all industries. It is not unusual for a female entrepreneur to segue from one field to something similar or quite different, as she tests the glass ceiling, transitions in and out of the workplace during childbearing years and channels various interests into profit-making ventures.

Take Marion Hook, for instance. Hook is the owner/operator of the Adobe Rose Inn, an eco-friendly bed and breakfast in Tucson, Arizona. And winner of one of the Trailblazer Awards. Before buying the historic inn five years ago, she worked in the non-profit world. She founded a consulting business. She started a line of scone mixes sold over the Internet and to stores and restaurants.

When it was time to remodel the inn, she insisted on going green, installing a "gray water" irrigation system that rerouted household water to the grounds, stores rain water in an earthenware cistern and installed solar tubes indoors to provide light. And rather than throw them away, Hook donates partially used soap, shampoo and other personal care products left behind by guests to low-income people in Puerto Penasco, Mexico.

Along the way, Hook has begun to embrace what others might call a bungle. "I'd never learn anything if I got it right the first time. Failure is a great teacher," she added. Like Hook, Davenport is convinced that failure is not only an option, it's a crucial developmental stage for most successful entrepreneurs. "Most people give up after hearing seven 'no's,' or rejections," she said. "What we call failure is actually the best, real-life learning experience. Learn to take rejection and failure, learn to figure out the next step to take."

But how do you turn failure into just another obstacle encountered along the way? Davenport says to learn from the obstacle, ask for help. "Be bold. I call it, 'getting your ask in gear.' To figure out what went wrong, or what to do next, go to the top person in the field and ask their help," she advised. "Yes, some people will turn you down. Again, you take the 'no,' the rejection, in stride, and consult someone else. And somebody will help you. It's the law of averages."

She shared an amusing anecdote about Norman Vincent Peale, theologian and author of "The Power of Positive Thinking," whose book was turned down by many publishers before finding a home. Davenport said Dr. Peale's wife, Mary, told her that he got so discouraged after 20 or so rejections that he tossed the single copy of his manuscript in the trash. "He told her not to touch it. So she wrapped butcher paper around the waste bin and took it on the subway with her, looking for publishers," she recalled.

The first version of the book was published in 1952. Still, all the positive thinking in the world isn't going to turn your boutique into the trendiest spot to shop if the location is bad, the suppliers unreliable, or the merchandise from last season. In any of these three scenarios, despite the setbacks, the dream is still viable if the obstacle is overcome.

Trailblazer award recipient Virginia Madueno — president of Imagen, a public relations and marketing firm in Modesto, California — has never had to advertise for clients until recently. Madueno "re-brands" other companies' advertising campaigns for the Spanish-speaking market. Word of mouth has propelled the niche firm through a thrilling growth cycle since it was founded in 2001.

"You see all these great ad campaigns generated by large, glamorous companies. For their Spanish-speaking customers, the companies would replace the English words with Spanish words in a literal translation. But a literal translation often doesn't have the same effect. So we take the English campaign and study it, take out the phrases that don't translate well, find similar analogies, and re-create the campaign," Madueno explained.

The current economic slowdown has hurt business, though, but rather than accept sagging revenues, Madueno wrote a brochure and is creating a direct marketing program to snag new clients. "I tell clients they must continuously re-create themselves, and then I didn't follow my own advice," she said with a laugh. Knowing when to walk away from a project altogether is difficult. Davenport advises listening to one's gut instinct, to sense when it's time to re-focus instead of doggedly following a project into the ground.

That said, Davenport said entrepreneurial success can come in the beginning of a career, strike repeatedly throughout a career, or even bust onto the scene after decades of focused effort. "There is no set time limit. Remember, the guy who developed the automobile air bag took 20 years to perfect it. Then he sold it to the auto industry and got a $20 million paycheck. It takes as long as it takes," she added.

Consistent persistence

Dealing with failure — even temporary failure — creates a particular type of frustration, she noted. Davenport believes that the most frustrated individuals in American society are "talented people who haven't learned how to fail, and as a result, are not utilizing their gifts, whether it's making cookies like Mrs. Fields or practicing law."

The third Trailblazer winner, Assunta Ng, wanted so badly to start a Chinese-language newspaper to help immigrants adapt to American life that in 1982 she raided her family's savings and went without a paycheck for two years. Today, the Seattle Chinese Post is an essential resource for immigrants, the first Chinese language newspaper in the Pacific Northwest. Ng also founded its English sister publication, the Northwest Asian Weekly.

She employs 12 people and has 30 part-time contractors. "The important thing is to persevere. This is really a significant factor for a businesswoman. And you must believe in yourself, and be willing to deal with tension in the family, because you're not home all the time, for instance," Ng continued. At Arbonne, Davenport concentrates on creating a "morale-producing environment" to boost productivity and creativity.

She makes it a point to praise employees publicly, and critique them privately. She encourages employees to develop "clarity of intention" about their life goals. Davenport also relies on lessons learned back in her talk-show host days, when she interviewed business leaders, many of whom were willing to share vital ideas on management.

"The TV show days were so good. I was hosting and producing, and interviewing the most interesting, successful people. I realized it is true that the organization fails when leaders don't recognize the masses they serve." Her most fascinating interview subjects shared a common attitude — they believed they could achieve what they set out to do.

Obstacles (read "failures") don't shake that belief. Instead, the entrepreneur figures out a new way to attack the problem. These entrepreneurs shared a second attitude — they were consistently persistent. "The unstoppable people are those with determination and persistence, who act with clarity of intention and passion. That's more important than talent or genius," Davenport said.

Bottom Line:

• Although women-owned businesses constitute the fastest-growing segment of the American business community, right now only 3 percent of federal contracts are set aside for them. Source: Small Business Administration.
• Founded in 1975, NAWBO is a non-profit organization for women entrepreneurs. Its mission is supporting and promoting economic growth of women in all industries.
• The National Association of Women Business Owners advocates changing the federal tax policy. Its official position: Legislation should be enacted to ensure tax equity and basic fairness for all forms of small business organization.
• NAWBO has approximately 500 members, according to a NAWBO representative.