SpaceX builds prototype rockets and pushes and pushes until something breaks.
The goal is to find the limits quickly, not avoid failure.
For example, they made 8 major test flights with their Starship program that either exploded, smashed into the ground, or broke apart.
Those were intentional tests, not accidents.
The philosophy is 100% by design.
So, there are two ways to go about progress:
- Try to avoid failure
- Build fast, test aggressively, learn from failure, and quickly pivot
For fitness, #2 is far and away our best option.
Failure Is Good
Not only that, it can be your direct path to success.
When you try new, positive things, you’re at least failing towards the right system.
I’ll prove it…
Failure Provides Data – Every attempt teaches us something, whether we succeed or not.
It took James Dyson 5,271 prototypes before he found a vacuum that worked.
For our fitness…
Let’s say you begin a new schedule that you’re gonna work out three times per week – Monday, Wednesday, Friday.
Like all the best laid plans, the first few weeks go swimmingly, then kids’ spring sports start and getting to the gym at 5p is no longer an option.
So, your gym bag goes in the trunk of your car…and stays there.
You have two ways to look at it:
- You failed at sustaining your workout routine.
- You learned that kids’ sports sometimes spill into your gym time. And now you need to think of a backup plan for when you can’t get to the gym (e.g. walk during kids’ practice or before games, bring your exercise bands, find a bodyweight-only workout).
Just like Mr. Dyson (now worth $22B), the only way for us to learn lessons is through experimentation.
Each time you run an “experiment”, the more you improve your odds of success.
And that is why “fail” is in quotes.
STAY STRONG,
Jeff
PS – To help shorten the learning curve and get you to success faster, we can give you tools.
To be fair, none of the training programs in the 18STRONG Membership are perfect, but every day we’re experimenting in the gym to get as close as we can.
See you on the inside!