How to Succeed at Failing, Part 1: The Chain of Events (Update)

We tend to think of tragedies as a single terrible moment, rather than the result of multiple bad decisions. Can this pattern be reversed? We try — with stories about wildfires, school shootings, and love. (Part one of a four-part series.)

SOURCES:Amy Edmondson • , professor of leadership management at Harvard Business School. Helen Fisher • , former senior research fellow at The Kinsey Institute and former chief science advisor to Match.com. Ed Galea • , founding director of the Fire Safety Engineering Group at the University of Greenwich. Gary Klein • , cognitive psychologist and pioneer in the field of naturalistic decision making. David Riedman • , founder of the K-12 School Shooting Database. Aaron Stark • , head cashier at Lowe's and keynote speaker. John Van Reenen • , professor at the London School of Economics.

RESOURCES: • " Ethan Crumbley: Parents of Michigan school gunman sentenced to at least 10 years • ," by Brandon Drenon (New York Times, • 2024). Right Kind of Wrong: The Science of Failing Well, • by Amy Edmondson (2023). • " How Fire Turned Lahaina Into a Death Trap • ," by Nicholas Bogel-Burroughs, Serge F. Kovaleski, Shawn Hubler, and Riley Mellen ( The New York Times, • 2023). The Violence Project: How to Stop a Mass Shooting Epidemic, • by Jillian Peterson and James Densley (2021). • " I Was Almost A School Shooter • ," by Aaron Stark ( TEDxBoulder, • 2018).

EXTRAS: • " Is Perfectionism Ruining Your Life? • " by People I (Mostly) Admire • (2023). • " Why Did You Marry That Person? • " by Freakonomics Radio • (2022). • " What Do We Really Learn From Failure? • " by No Stupid Questions • (2021). • " How to Fail Like a Pro • ," by Freakonomics Radio • (2019). • " Failure Is Your Friend • ," by Freakonomics Radio • (2014).

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