You shipped.
You made a decision to get something special out the door on a specific day, and you did it. I applaud you. You acted as a linchpin and shipped something new and exciting. You went against protocol and tried something fresh and unique.
Unfortunately, it was a flop. It turned out to be a complete and utter failure.
In to the office walks Bob, the Monday-morning quarterback. This is Bob’s favorite moment – to bask in your dismay and to cherish the moment when the deck is stacked against you. Bob is eager to tell us he would have done it this way or that way. Bob surely wouldn’t have done it the way you did. Hell no.
And Bob is first to tell your Boss, “told ya so, I knew that wouldn’t work!”
Here’s the thing, in 5-10-20 years, Bob will still be playing for the same team. He’ll still be playing that same position. He’ll still be a lousy, washed up, second-string quarterback continuously doing his Monday-morning thing. Fresh meat is what Bob craves. This is Bob’s drug. If only there was a way to warn the fresh meat. Bob has a sneaky way of causing creative paralysis amongst you special folks out there. He plays dirty.
But not you. In five years, you’ll be long gone. You’ll be a star. You’ll be in demand. You’ll never wait long as a free agent. You’ll be sought out. Bob will pass out resumes; after all, 20 years of experience must mean something, right? You won’t have a resume. You wont NEED a resume. You know that one, two, or even ten failures isn’t enough to take you out of the game.
Bob’s a sly S.O.B.
Let the Bobs be Bobs. You keep shipping.
“Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure, than to take rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much, because they live in the gray twilight that knows neither victory nor defeat.” ~ Theodore Roosevelt
