Quitting Is Not An Option

Well, that was embarrassing.

My favorite team lost the game. Actually, it was a blow-out. I believe the technical phrase for what happened is “It was a clinic”.

We were schooled. On national TV.

I don’t even think those were our players on the field.  They must have been imposters wearing our uniforms.

That would have been a best-case scenario.

I’m sure that was a long ride home for the team. My guess is that the coach had some “motivational” words for the players.  Perhaps they had to watch the game on the ride home to see just exactly where things went so horribly wrong.

Yes, I’m sure this week is probably one of the worst for every player. Here’s what I’m guessing:

• Players do not want to walk across campus; no reason to hold their head up.
• Not one player wants to sit in class while others stare at him.
• Many players may want to throw in the towel; give up.

Yes, bombing out is embarrassing.

One thing I do know: Neither the coach nor the team will give up.

Quitting is not an option.

So they will review the tapes. They will run drills. They might make some player changes. They will study plays like preparing for final exams.

They will practice like never before.

They will win again, proving to themselves and to everyone else that they are a good team.

All I’ve got to say is, thank goodness my work mistakes are not watched by millions on national TV.

That said, I’m guessing that most of us, at one point or another, have experienced the “agony of defeat” – or at least feeling defeated – at work.

Maybe the project you were leading missed its’ goal and you wanted to throw in the towel?

Perhaps the annual review wasn’t quite as stellar as you thought it should be and figured, why bother to try anymore?

Or maybe you just had a bad day or week and simply wanted a do-over?

It’s hard to walk back into the office feeling defeated, wondering if others are whispering behind their cubicles about “Project Fail”.

We all have bad days, weeks or projects. I get it. Your desk, your “home away from home”, the place where it “all went wrong”, can be depressing to see.

Even if the “oops” is something that only we know about, we can internalize the error to the point of being unproductive, sometimes wanting to hang our heads in defeat.

What do you do after such a fail?

• Take the constructive comments from management and figure out how using that information might have helped.
• Write a quick “post-mortem”, including the original project goals, strategies and tactics, as well as the final outcome. Include a list of “Take-Aways”; things you learned and what you would do different next time.
•  File this document where you can find it.
• Now, smile, and hold your head up.

Thing is, we are usually tougher on ourselves than others are on us. Sure, no one likes to “lose”, whether it’s on the playing field or at work.

What’s important is that we determine where we made mistakes, correct those mistakes and move on. Next time, the project – or game – should have a different outcome.

Quitting is not an option.