生活中我們經(jīng)常聽到一句話叫做“失敗是成功之母”。然后我們仔細回想一下，最細思極恐的事情就是你一直在失敗，幾乎從沒成功過。

這種情況下我們需要反思一下，自己是不是一直在盲目失敗呢？

今天的演講或許會點醒我們一些什么。

點擊觀看

If we traveled back to the year 800 BC,

如果我們穿越到公元前800年的希臘，

in Greece, we would see that merchants whose businesses failed

我們會看到經(jīng)營生意失敗的商人

were forced to sit in the marketplace with a basket over their heads.

被迫坐在市場上，用籃子扣住頭。

In premodern Italy,

在前現(xiàn)代意大利，

failed business owners, who had outstanding debts,

破產(chǎn)企業(yè)主，若有未償還的債務(wù)，

were taken totally naked to the public square

會被赤條條地帶到公共廣場，

where they had to bang their butts against a special stone

用一塊特殊的石頭打自己的屁股，

while a crowd jeered at them.

同時還有一群嘲笑他們的圍觀群眾。

In the 17th century in France,

在17世紀(jì)的法國，

failed business owners were taken to the center of the market,

失敗的企業(yè)主被帶到市場的中央，

where the beginning of their bankruptcy was publicly announced.

在那里，他們破產(chǎn)的消息被公之于眾。

And in order to avoid immediate imprisonment,

為了避免立即入獄，

they had to wear a green bonnet

他們必須帶一頂綠色的帽子，

so that everyone knew they were a failure.

這樣每個人就會知道他們是失敗者。

Of course, these are extreme examples.

當(dāng)然，這些都是極端的例子。

But it is important to remember

但請記住，

that when we excessively punish those who fail,

當(dāng)我們過度懲罰那些失敗的人時，

we stifle innovation and business creation,

我們是在扼殺創(chuàng)新和商業(yè)創(chuàng)造的能力，

the engines of economic growth in any country.

而這些能力是每個國家經(jīng)濟成長的引擎。

Time has passed, and today we don’t publicly humiliate failed entrepreneurs.

時間飛逝，今天我們已經(jīng)不會 公開羞辱失敗的企業(yè)家了。

And they don’t broadcast their failures on social media.

他們也不會在社交媒體上 宣揚他們的失敗。

In fact, I think that all of us can relate with the pain of failure.

事實上，我認為我們所有人 都體會過失敗的痛苦。

But we don’t share the details of those experiences.

但我們并不分享那些體驗的細節(jié)。

And I totally get it, my friends, I have also been there.

我完全明白，朋友們， 我也陷入過那樣的境地。

I had a business that failed

我有過生意失敗的經(jīng)驗，

and sharing that story was incredibly hard.

而且分享這個失敗真的很難。

In fact, it required seven years, a good dose of vulnerability

事實上，它花費了我長達 7年的時間，適度的脆弱感，

and the company of my friends.

還有我朋友們的陪伴。

This is my failure story.

我的失敗故事是這樣的。

When I was in college, studying business, I met a group of indigenous women.

當(dāng)我還在大學(xué)的商學(xué)院學(xué)習(xí)時， 我遇到一群原住民婦女。

They lived in a poor rural community in the state of Puebla, in central Mexico.

她們住在墨西哥中部普埃布拉州 一個貧窮的農(nóng)村社區(qū)。

They made beautiful handmade products.

她們會制作漂亮的手工產(chǎn)品。

And when I met them and I saw their work,

當(dāng)我遇到她們，看到她們的作品時，

I decided I wanted to help.

我決定要幫助她們。

With some friends, I cofounded a social enterprise

懷揣著幫助這些女性獲取穩(wěn)定的收入，

with the mission to help the women create an income stream

以及提升她們生活質(zhì)量的使命，

and improve their quality of life.

我與幾位朋友共同創(chuàng)立了一個社會企業(yè)。

We did everything by the book,

我們一直在照本宣科，

as we had learned in business school.

正如我們在商學(xué)院學(xué)到的那樣。

We got investors,

我們有了投資者，

we spent a lot of time building the business and training the women.

我們花了很多時間建立企業(yè) 和培訓(xùn)這些女性。

But soon we realized we were novices.

但很快我們意識到，我們只是菜鳥。

The handmade products were not selling,

手工藝品根本賣不動，

and the financial plan we had made was totally unrealistic.

我們做的財務(wù)計劃也完全不現(xiàn)實。

In fact, we worked for years without a salary,

事實上，我們賠本賺吆喝地經(jīng)營了幾年，

hoping that a miracle would happen,

希望奇跡會發(fā)生，

that magically a great buyer would arrive

有個大買家會奇跡般地出現(xiàn)，

and she would make the business profitable.

讓整個生意變得有利可圖。

But that miracle never happened.

但那個奇跡從未發(fā)生。

In the end, we had to close the business,

最終，我們不得不關(guān)閉公司，

and that broke my heart.

這讓我十分痛心。

I started everything to create a positive impact

我開始這一切是為了給藝術(shù)家的生活

on the life of the artisans.

創(chuàng)造積極的影響。

And I felt that I have done the opposite.

但我感到，整個事情的發(fā)展卻事與愿違。

I felt so guilty

我感到內(nèi)疚，

that I decided to hide this failure

于是決定在接下來幾年的

from my conversations and my resume for years.

交談和簡歷中隱藏這個失敗。

I didn’t know other failed entrepreneurs,

我不認識其他失敗的企業(yè)家，

and I thought I was the only loser in the world.

當(dāng)時只覺得我是世界上唯一的失敗者。

One night, seven years later, I was out with some friends

7年之后的一個晚上， 我跟朋友一起出去，

and we were talking about the life of the entrepreneur.

我們談到了企業(yè)家的生活。

And of course, the issue of failure came out.

自然而然地，我們聊到了失敗的話題。

I decided to confess to my friends the story of my failed business.

我決定向朋友坦白 曾經(jīng)創(chuàng)業(yè)失敗的經(jīng)歷。

And they shared similar stories.

而她們則分享了類似的故事。

In that moment, a thought became really clear in my mind:

在那一刻，我的腦海中清晰地 出現(xiàn)了這樣一個念頭：

all of my friends were failures.

我所有的朋友都是失敗者。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

Being more serious, that night I realized

嚴(yán)肅地說，那晚我意識到：

that A: I wasn’t the only loser in the world,

首先，我不是世界上唯一的失敗者，

and B: we all have hidden failures.

第二，我們?nèi)荚陔[藏自己的失敗。

Please tell me if that is not true.

如果有誰沒這么做過， 請一定要告訴我。

That night was like an exorcism for me.

那個晚上對我來說， 就如同一場驅(qū)魔活動。

I realized that sharing your failures makes you stronger, not weaker.

我意識到分享你的失敗 可以讓你更強，而不是更弱。

And being open to my vulnerability

坦然面對自己的脆弱，

helped me connect with others in a deeper and more meaningful way

幫助我與其他人建立了 更深和更有意義的連接，

and embrace life lessons I wouldn’t have learned previously.

并擁抱過去無法學(xué)到的生活教訓(xùn)。

As a consequence of this experience

作為分享我們不成功的

of sharing stories of businesses that didn’t work,

商業(yè)故事的結(jié)果，

we decided to create a platform of events

我們打算創(chuàng)建一個活動平臺，

to help others share their failure stories.

來幫助別人分享她們的失敗故事。

And we called it Fuckup Nights.

我們稱之為“搞砸之夜”。

Years later, we also created a research center

幾年后，我們也創(chuàng)建了以個研究中心，

devoted to the story of failure

致力于失敗故事，

and its implications on business, people and society

以及它對商業(yè)，人類和社會的啟示，

and as we love cool names, we called it the Failure Institute.

由于我們喜歡比較酷的名字， 于是稱之為“搞砸研究所”。

It has been surprising to see

令人驚訝的是，

that when an entrepreneur stands on a stage

當(dāng)企業(yè)家站在舞臺上

and shares a story of failure,

分享他們失敗的故事時，

she can actually enjoy that experience.

她能夠享受那種體驗。

It doesn’t have to be a moment of shame and embarrassment,

這不一定像過去一樣，是象征著

as it used to be in the past.

羞恥和尷尬的時刻。

It is an opportunity to share lessons learned

這是一個分享經(jīng)驗教訓(xùn)

and build empathy.

和構(gòu)建同理心的機會。

We have also discovered

我們也發(fā)現(xiàn)，

that when the members of a team share their failures, magic happens.

當(dāng)團隊成員分享 她們的失敗時，奇跡發(fā)生了。

Bonds grow stronger and collaboration becomes easier.

紐帶增強，協(xié)作變得更容易了。

Through our events and research projects,

通過我們的活動和研究項目，

we have found some interesting facts.

我們發(fā)現(xiàn)了一些有趣的事實。

For instance, that men and women react in a different way

比如，男人和女人在生意失敗之后，

after the failure of a business.

反應(yīng)是不一樣的。

The most common reaction among men

男性最常見的反應(yīng)是

is to start a new business within one year of failure,

在失敗后的一年內(nèi)再次開始新的業(yè)務(wù)，

but in a different sector,

但是在不同的行業(yè)，

while women decide to look for a job

而女性則決定找份工作，

and postpone the creation of a new business.

并推遲創(chuàng)造新事業(yè)。

Our hypothesis is that this happens

我們對此的猜測是，

because women tend to suffer more from the impostor syndrome.

女性更容易受到“冒牌者癥候群”的折磨。

We feel that we need something else to be a good entrepreneur.

我們覺得我們還需要其他東西， 才能成為好的企業(yè)家。

But I have seen that in many, many cases women have everything that’s needed.

但我在很多案例中見到，女性其實 已經(jīng)具備了所需要的一切品質(zhì)。

We just need to take the step.

我們只是需要多邁出一步。

And in the case of men,

而在男性的例子中，

it is more common to see that they feel they have enough knowledge

更普遍的情況是，他們覺得 自己已經(jīng)擁有了足夠的知識，

and just need to put it in practice in another place with better luck.

只是在等待一個更好的機會。

Another interesting finding has been

另一個有趣的發(fā)現(xiàn)是，

that there are regional differences on how entrepreneurs cope with failure.

企業(yè)家如何應(yīng)對失敗， 表現(xiàn)出了地域上的差別。

For instance, the most common reaction

比如，在美洲大陸，

after the failure of a business in the American continent

生意失敗后人們最常見反應(yīng)是

is to go back to school.

回歸學(xué)校。

While in Europe, the most common reaction is to look for a therapist.

而在歐洲，人們更愿意去找個治療師。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

We’re not sure which is a better reaction after the failure of a business,

我們不確定面對生意失敗， 究竟哪種反應(yīng)更好，

but this is something we will study in the future.

但以后會仔細研究一下。

Another interesting finding has been

另一個有趣發(fā)現(xiàn)是，

the profound impact that public policy has on failed entrepreneurs.

針對失敗企業(yè)家的公共政策 所帶來的深遠影響。

For instance, in my country, in Mexico,

例如，在我的國家，墨西哥，

the regulatory environment is so hard,

監(jiān)管環(huán)境苛刻，

that closing a business can take you a lot of time and a lot of money.

關(guān)閉一家公司需要花費 大量的時間和金錢。

Let’s begin with the money.

我們先說說金錢。

In the best possible scenario,

在最好的情況下，

meaning you don’t have problems with partners,

意味著你跟伙伴，

providers, clients, employees,

供應(yīng)商，客戶，員工沒有糾紛，

in the best possible scenario,

在最好的情況下，

officially closing a business will cost you 2,000 dollars.

正式關(guān)閉一家公司需要花費2千美元。

Which is a lot of money in Mexico.

在墨西哥，這個數(shù)目可不算小。

Someone who earns the minimum wage

一個賺最低工資的人，

would have to work for 15 months to save this amount.

需要工作15個月才能存夠這筆錢。

Now, let’s talk about the time.

現(xiàn)在，我們再來說說時間。

As you may know, in most of the developing world,

你可能知道在多數(shù)發(fā)展中國家，

the average life expectancy of a business is two years.

企業(yè)的平均預(yù)期壽命是2年。

In Mexico, the process of officially closing a business takes two years.

在墨西哥，正式關(guān)閉一家企業(yè) 也需要兩年的時間。

What happens when the average life expectancy of a business

當(dāng)企業(yè)的平均預(yù)期壽命跟

is so similar to the time it will take you to close it if it doesn’t work?

關(guān)掉它的時間一樣長時，會發(fā)生什么？

Of course, this discourages business creation

顯然，這無法鼓勵企業(yè)創(chuàng)新，

and promotes informal economy.

反而會促進非正規(guī)生意。

In fact, econometric research has proved

事實上，經(jīng)濟研究證明，

that if the process of declaring bankruptcy takes less time and less money,

如果宣布破產(chǎn)的流程越短，花錢越少，

more new firms will enter the market.

更多新的企業(yè)就會進入市場。

For this reason, in 2017,

正因為如此，在2017年，

we proposed a series of public policy recommendations

我們提出了一系列在墨西哥

for the procedure of officially closing businesses in Mexico.

關(guān)閉企業(yè)的流程的公共政策建議。

For a whole year,

在整整一年中，

we worked with entrepreneurs from all over the country

我們與全國的企業(yè)家

and with Congress.

和國會一道工作。

And the good news is that we managed to help change the law.

好消息是，我們成功地協(xié)助修改了法律。

Yay!

吔！

(Applause)

（鼓掌）

The idea is that when the new regulation comes into force,

其背后的想法是，當(dāng)新規(guī)生效時，

entrepreneurs will be able to close their businesses in an online procedure

企業(yè)家將可以通過快速且 廉價的線上流程

that is faster and inexpensive.

關(guān)閉他們的公司。

(Sighs)

（松一口氣）

On the night we invented Fuckup Nights,

在我們創(chuàng)建'搞砸之夜'時，

we never imagined that the movement would grow this big.

我們從來沒想到這場運動 會發(fā)展到如此大的規(guī)模。

We are in 80 countries now.

我們的業(yè)務(wù)已經(jīng)開展到80個國家了。

In that moment, our only intention

在創(chuàng)立那刻，我們唯一的意圖

was to put the topic of failure on the table.

是把失敗的話題放到桌面，

To help our friends see that failure is something we must talk about.

去幫助我的朋友認識到， 失敗是我們不應(yīng)該回避的話題。

It is not a cause of humiliation, as it used to be in the past,

它不再像過去那樣，只代表著羞恥，

or a cause of celebration, as some people say.

或是慶祝的理由，也有人這樣形容。

In fact, I want to confess something.

事實上，我需要坦言一件事情。

Every time I listen to Silicon Valley types or students

每次我聽到硅谷范的論調(diào)，或者有學(xué)生

bragging about failing fast and often like it’s no big deal, I cringe.

吹噓自己如何迅速失敗，而且常常覺得 這沒什么大不了的，我就會感到不寒而栗。

Because I think that there is a dark side on the mantra 'fail fast.'

因為我覺得“迅速失敗”的 言論有著很大的弊端。

Of course, failing fast is a great way to accelerate learning

當(dāng)然，迅速失敗是加速學(xué)習(xí)， 避免浪費時間的

and avoid wasting time.

好辦法。

But I fear that when we present rapid failure

但我害怕的是，當(dāng)我們把迅速失敗

to entrepreneurs as their one and only option,

當(dāng)成企業(yè)家們的一個或唯一選項時，

we might be promoting laziness.

我們可能在鼓勵淺嘗輒止。

We might be promoting that entrepreneurs give up too easily.

我們可能在鼓勵企業(yè)家輕易放棄。

I also fear that the culture of rapid failure

我同時也害怕這種草率失敗的文化

could be minimizing the devastating consequences

對企業(yè)失敗所帶來的惡劣影響

of the failure of a business.

過于輕描淡寫了。

For instance, when my social enterprise died,

例如，當(dāng)我的社會企業(yè)倒閉時，

the worst part was that I had to go back to the indigenous community

最糟糕的環(huán)節(jié)是，我需要回到原住民社區(qū)

and tell the women that the business had failed

告訴那些女性，生意失敗了，

and it was my fault.

這是我的錯。

For some people this could be seen like a great learning opportunity for me,

在有些人看來，這是我 得到的最好的教訓(xùn)，

but the truth is that the closure of this business

但真相是，關(guān)閉這個生意，

represented much more than that.

其背后的意義要深遠得多。

It meant that the women would stop receiving an income

它意味著這些女性將沒法獲得

that they really needed.

她們迫切需要的收入。

For this reason, I want to propose something.

針對這一點，我有個提議。

I want to propose that just as we put aside the idea

我想要提議，就像我們摒棄了公開羞辱

of publicly humiliating failed entrepreneurs,

失敗企業(yè)家這種想法一樣，

we must put aside the idea that failing fast is always the best.

我們也必須把“迅速失敗總是 最佳選擇”的想法拋諸腦后。

And I want to propose a new mantra:

我想要提出一個新的箴言：

fail mindfully.

謹慎地失敗。

We must remember that businesses are made of people,

我們必須記住公司由人組成，

businesses are not entities that appear and disappear

公司不是創(chuàng)立和失敗都沒有

magically without consequences.

任何后果的神奇實體。

When a firm dies, some people will lose their jobs.

當(dāng)公司關(guān)閉時，有些人會失去工作。

And others will lose their money.

有些人會失去收入。

And in the case of social and green enterprises,

在社會和綠色企業(yè)中，

the death of this business can have a negative impact

這些企業(yè)的死亡會對它們服務(wù)的

on the ecosystems or communities they were trying to serve.

生態(tài)或社區(qū)產(chǎn)生負面的影響。

But what does it mean to fail mindfully?

那么謹慎地失敗是什么意思呢？

It means being aware of the impact, of the consequences

意思是注意企業(yè)失敗的

of the failure of that business.

影響和后果。

Being aware of the lessons learned.

注意學(xué)到的教訓(xùn)。

And being aware of the responsibility

意識到與世界分享

to share those learnings with the world.

這些教訓(xùn)的責(zé)任。

Thank you.

謝謝。

(Applause)

（鼓掌）