Even Monkeys Fall From Trees: How Do You Deal with Failure?

Which Are You?

• A fresh-out-of-school hard charger. You’re on a mission to leverage your academic success and build your brand, your business, your market share. You “know it all.”
• A successful, middle-aged professional. You’ve been in business for a number of years, either building your own company, or working your way up the ranks of a large organization. You’re a survivor. You “know it all.”
• You’re the segment leader in a rapidly changing industry… for now. Competitors are closing in. Instead of embracing proactive—and painful—growth, you blame others.

Each of these represent various levels of success and… each are ripe for failure.

Even Monkeys Fall from Trees

I learned this Japanese proverb while in Graduate School in Japan, and reminded of its powerful lessons throughout my many years living there.

This proverb captures the challenges every organization, and every one of us, ultimately faces; regardless of how capable or skilled we are, we all eventually lose our balance and make mistakes… we all “fall from our trees!”

Here are the proverb’s key lessons:

• The tree branches will eventually break
• The wind will eventually blow
• Don’t blame the metaphorical tree branches, or unexpected gusts of wind,
• Own your mistakes,
• Learn from your mistakes,
• Take action to minimize your mistakes
• Climb back into the tree and give it another go
• Strive to become proactive, not simply reactive; make sure to strengthen your tree

The benefits of managing the change process proactively, rather than reacting to the changes forced upon us, should convince anyone to let go of the defenses and excuses that prevent creativity and innovation.

So it’s time to ponder these questions:

1. When you last “fell out of your tree,” how did you handle it? Did you accept responsibility or blame others? Did you blame the branches of the tree?
2. Are you, or your company, so successful that you can’t imagine a competitor unseating you from your lofty perch?
3. Are you prone to holding on to the “old ways,” despite massive marketplace changes?
4. When is the last time you “failed successfully,” and crawled back into the tree?

What steps will you take to strengthen your tree?