Henry Ford, American industrialist, “There is no disgrace in honest failure; there is disgrace in fearing to fail”
The titan of industry is not only known for revolutionizing manufacturing with his innovations to the assembly line but also his words of wisdom.
Silicon Valley entrepreneurs embrace failure, it’s even seen as a badge of honor and a steppingstone to future success. Henry Ford had a similar attitude about how to progress and make the future a reality.
In his 1922 autobiography, ‘My Life and Work’, the American industrialist stated that one of the principles of the service his car company provided was “an absence of fear of the future and of veneration for the past.” He stated that “one who fears the future, who fears failure, limits his activities. Failure is only the opportunity more intelligently to begin again. There is no disgrace in honest failure; there is disgrace in fearing to fail. What is past is useful only as it suggests ways and means for progress.”
Much like learning to walk, or to ride a bike, just because we fall, we don’t give up. We brush the dust off, take into account what went wrong, and give it another go adjusting our balance.
Principals of performing a service
Ford stated in his autobiography that “waste and greed block delivery of true service.” He felt that his company’s mission was to make the lives of everyone connected to the company, the manager, worker and customer, “better for our existence."
In addition to using failure to learn and improve, of the four principals on which he based the Ford Motor Company’s service, he said there should be “a disregard of competition. Whoever does the thing best ought to be the one to do it.”
“It is criminal to try to get business away from another man—criminal because one is then trying to lower for personal gain the condition of one’s fellow man—to rule by force instead of by intelligence,” the titan of industry explained.
The main goal behind any businesses venture is to make a profit. Ford acknowledged this but he said that service should be put ahead of profit. “Well-conducted business enterprise cannot fail to return a profit, but profit must and inevitably will come as a reward for good service. It cannot be the basis—it must be the result of service,” the innovator said.
Finally, Ford shared that “manufacturing is not buying low and selling high.” As he stated, he wanted to avoid waste and greed. The carmaker said that materials should be purchased at a fair price, “with the smallest possible addition of cost.” Those should then be transformed into a consumable produce for the consumer. “Gambling, speculating, and sharp dealing, tend only to clog this progression,” he cautioned.
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