My friend Rick Salmeron recently shared this video with me.  I am grateful for the reminder that the only road to success is through repeated failure. 

Do you remember the last time you fell flat on your face?  I do. It was about two weeks ago.  It was the opportunity of a lifetime.  I was invited to join a panel discussion at the 2010 Wind Power Conference’s public viewing of Climate Refugees, an internationally-acclaimed documentary on the tens of millions of people who are being forced to move as more of the world’s land becomes uninhabitable through ecological disasters and climate change.  There I found myself, sitting on stage between film director Michael Nash and Governor Bill Ritter of Colorado, the greenest governor in America. The Governor handed me the mike to so I could speak my truth to the 150 or so international clean-energy businesspeople in attendance.  As a PR expert, I knew this was my chance to share my mission through a powerful, thought-provoking, perfectly-articulated set of statements in an engaging style that, in 2 minutes or less, would go straight to listener’s hearts while challenging their minds.  

So what did I do? Babble out an ill-prepared, lackluster sales pitch for my new book, peppered with several self-deprecating remarks to lend comic relief, but entirely too light to stand up to the weighty messages from my fellow panelists.  I’ll spare you the details, but suffice it to say that a self-actualizing moment this was not.  This wasn’t what I had intended.  I had done some prep work, but I had neglected to bring my notes (the printer on my computer was out of ink.)  In some other universe, this comedy of errors might be funny, but I’m not laughing. I’m disappointed, even a little embarrassed. 

But there is good news. Experiencing the discomfort of facing what I am not (neither award-winning film director nor governor), I am reminded of what I am.  A first-time author. A mom of two preschoolers. A person transformed from a zombie shopper into citizen consumer through the power of the ideas put forth in my book Green, American Style.  A person trying to make a difference. And, it should be noted given the conference attendees’ interest in wind power, a proud customer of Green Mountain Energy and wind-power advocate for the past 11 years. That makes me an early adopter and a visionary consumer with a small but significant role in doubling Texas’ wind power usage over the past decade.

In short, I am someone who knows that I matter. That is the first requirement of leadership. The second requirement, I am reminded, is knowing that I matter enough to prepare myself for influence.  I’ve learned a few things from this recent exercise in failure. I need to be so clear about who I am that I don’t forget it when I’m in the company of those who are greater or simply further down the path than I am.  I’m working on an exercise I call a Mission Map, a tool to help me organize my thoughts and beliefs on my subject so that when asked, I will have at the ready the perfect answer for any situation (I’ll share my template in a future post). I’m also replacing that ink cartridge in my printer so that when that next big opportunity rolls in, I won’t have to leave my notes at home.  Finally, I’m dusting off a favorite book from my bookshelf, Failing Forward by John Maxwell.  I can use a few more reminders on why failure can be a good thing after all.