In 1968, Dr. Spencer Silver was trying to invent a super-strong adhesive. Dr. Silver accidentally invented a low-tack re-stickable glue, which is what you find on the back of post-it notes.

Arguably, Dr. Silver failed, given his original objective. However, he did not let go of the potential to create something from his failure. It took several years, but we have post-its because of this failure.

Every failure is an opportunity to learn. When something doesn’t go as planned, look at the outcome with curiosity. Ask questions like, “What might I create from this?” or “What can I learn from this?”

You never know where your curiosity might take you. Look where it took Dr. Silver.

You’ve got this.

Thank you to my friend Gitte Klitgaard, for a twitter conversation that inspired this post.