Keep Trying, Keep Innovating

If you try a key in the lock and it doesn't turn, that's failed attempt #1.  If you try the same key 100 more times, chances are high you'll continue to get the same result.

Most of the time, what you do or don't do between attempts makes a bigger difference than how many times you try.  You could find another key, call someone who has a key, or hire a locksmith. Or, you can do nothing, and hope for different results.  

How often do we attack a challenge with the same strategy we used last time, hoping it will go better this time?

• We change a couple slides in the pitch deck, then keep giving the same presentation with the same results.
• We leave at the last minute, then blame the traffic when we're late.
• We work faster and faster trying to keep up with the increasing pace of emails.

Some of the most important decisions we make are the ones we make first after something doesn't work the way we want.