The book, The Brilliance in Failure – A Leader’s Learning Journey by Christian A. Brickman, takes the reader on a journey through Brickman’s career — the ups and the downs. He discusses why he failed in certain situations and what he did to turn the situations around.
Brickman talks about how when he started in his career he was a “know it all” by bragging and exaggerating. By exhibiting this type of behavior, it set him back, especially when he thought he landed two different jobs while working at NutraSweet. He bragged to his colleagues that he was leaving and taking on a different position. He was convinced that the two other jobs were going to hire him. When they both told him he didn’t get the job, he worked around the clock to make sure he showed results to his supervisors at NutraSweet.
When the top boss saw him on the elevator, he called him out and said, “I thought you were leaving.”
The next day, Brickman set an appointment on the boss’s calendar and addressed the conversation they had and admitted his mistake. This enabled him to keep his job and continue his career path at NutraSweet before starting a new role a few years down the line.
Each chapter delves into what he learned along the way and he shares this with the reader.
Some of the points he makes include:
- asking for help, even if you don’t want to
- don’t dismiss ideas from people who are different than you
- make sure to spotlight your people
- get people who are different to be part of your team
- be transparet
- learn to negotiate and don’t get emotional
- learn how to make tough calls
- be a coach not a critic
There’s also a section on the “do nothing strategy” where Brickman discusses companies like Kodak that saw changes and acted to do nothing, therefore failing. He definitely has a different perspective on this.
The book is filled with a wealth of information that would be beneficial for anyone starting out in business. But there is also some good information for experienced leaders.
