- The Growth Compass
- Posts
- đ§ How To Think Through Failure Before It Happens
đ§ How To Think Through Failure Before It Happens
Today, we talk about how sometimes the missing links to success are preparation and foresight because of its ability to make you âpresilient.â

Good Day, and welcome to The Growth Compass!
â Reminder: We have given all subscribers access to our FREE Growth Compass Library that you can access HERE.
Hereâs Where We Are Headed Today:
Mike Shanahanâs Message to His Son After Losing the Super Bowl
How to Think Through Failure Before It Happens
Favorite Posts I Found This Week
Free Mental Fitness Links đ
â Mike Shanahanâs Message to His Son (Kyle) After Losing the Super Bowl
âYou keep fighting. Thatâs (f***ing) life. I donât care what job youâve got, when things happen - youâve got to fight through it. You want to get to the mountain top, what? Youâre going to feel sorry for yourself? F that! You get back up and you keep climbing.â

Join 5 Million People Whoâve Made Mental Health a Priority
Stress, anxiety, relationship strugglesâlife doesnât pause when things feel overwhelming. But you donât have to go through it alone. More than 5 million people worldwide have trusted BetterHelp to start their mental health journey, and 93% are matched with a therapist who meets their preferencesâoften within 48 hours.
BetterHelp makes therapy flexible and convenientâconnect by phone, video, or text. And therapy works: 72% of clients report reduced symptoms within 12 weeks.
Take the first step toward feeling better and get 30% off your first three months.
Think Through Failure Before It Happens
Too many times, Iâve seen parents try to steal the struggle for their kids before failure happens. The greatest thing you can do for yourself, your team, and your family is to teach them how to adapt and prepare for challenges before they occur. Because there will be high pressure situations and new challenges that always arise. So today, we are going to talk about the topic of âpresilience.â

What you need to know: Presilience is the ability to anticipate challenges and prepare yourself to handle them effectively before they happen. It combines resilience (the ability to recover from setbacks) with foresight (the ability to predict potential obstacles). This proactive mindset ensures youâre ready to face difficulties with confidence and clarity.
Instead of waiting for adversity to strike and reacting to it, presilience encourages you to plan ahead. Itâs not about avoiding failure - because failure is inevitable - but about being prepared to manage it effectively and learn from it.
Why it matters: Itâs about being prepared and adaptable. Coaches and athletes face immense pressure to perform under uncertain conditions, and presilience equips them with tools to handle these challenges. It reduces stress, enhances decision-making, and builds confidence in high-pressure situations.
Two Effective Tools to Build Presilience:
WOOP - Developed by Dr. Gabrielle Oettingen, WOOP stands for Wish, Outcome, Obstacle, Plan. Itâs a science-backed method for achieving goals and preparing for obstacles. Hereâs how it works:
Wish: Define a clear and specific goal.
Outcome: Imagine the best possible result if you succeed.
Obstacle: Identify potential challenges that might arise.
Plan: Develop a concrete plan to overcome those obstacles.
WOOP is effective because it combines positive visualization with realistic planning. Research shows that people using WOOP are 26% more likely to achieve their goals compared to those relying on traditional goal-setting techniques. By acknowledging potential difficulties, you can mentally rehearse your responses and reduce anxiety about failure.
A pre-mortem is a proactive planning technique used in business and sports. It involves imagining a future scenario where a project or performance has failed and brainstorming reasons for that failure. For instance, a coach might ask, âIf we lose the championship, what will have caused it?â
This process helps teams:
Identify weaknesses in their strategy
Address potential risks before they escalate
Encourage collaboration by involving everyone in identifying solutions
Pre-mortems are particularly valuable because they shift the focus from blaming to problem-solving.

Five Presilience Questions to Ask Before a Big Event, Performance, or Presentation:
What is my main goal for this event, and how will I measure success?
What challenges or obstacles will I face, and how will I prepare for them?
How do I want to feel going into this moment, and what will I do to create that mindset?
What steps can I take to stay focused if things donât go as planned?
How will I learn from this experience, regardless of the outcome?
Bottom Line: Presilience is about readiness and adaptability. By combining tools like WOOP and pre-mortems with self-awareness and proactive planning, you can face challenges head-on. In todayâs unpredictable world, presilience empowers you to turn potential setbacks into opportunities for success.
Favorite Posts I Found This Week
In a Championship Culture, EVERYONE leads:
đŞđž Some lead by example.
đŁď¸ Some lead with their voice.
đĽ Some lead with their energy from the bench.
đ Some lead with their play.
From the star player to the role player,
each person matters and every effort counts.â Jeff Janssen (@janssenleader)
11:10 AM ⢠Jan 17, 2025
The language of the mind is logic and reasoning, while that of the heart is feelings and emotions.
Great leaders are bilingual .
#Leadership#LeadFromTheHeart
â Mark C. Crowley (@MarkCCrowley)
3:30 PM ⢠Jan 13, 2025
Please share this with every youth athlete you know!
This is my son Jack in the picture, but I've encouraged all 3 of my kids to read these 28 mindsets, approaches, and affirmations as often as possible:
1. I strive to play well, not to avoid mistakes.
2. I focus on the⌠x.com/i/web/status/1âŚ
â Alan Stein, Jr. (@AlanSteinJr)
2:04 PM ⢠Jan 18, 2025
Free Mental Fitness Links đ
For Athletes and Performers:
For Coaches and Leaders:
That's a wrap for today. If you want to spread the joy, make sure to refer the newsletter to someone you think would benefit!
What'd you think of today's edition? |
What I am reading and listening to:
Want More?
Feel free to view all of our FREE resources online here and our growing content library!
Interesting in advertising? Fill out this survey and weâll get back to you soon!