I attended the Portland Creative Conference this saturday, and although I thought it was an utter disaster, the first presenter, Dan Wieden of the Ad Agency “Wieden and Kennedy” was phenomenal.

W+K Mantra, created with 150,000 pushpins

In an entrance way at Wieden and Kennedy this sign was made from 150,000 pushpins. The message reflects one of W+K founder Dan Wieden’s sayings, “You’re only good to me after you’ve made three tremendous mistakes.”
Hence, the advice to everyone at W+K : Fail Harder.

At the conference Mr. Wieden noted that thru failure and mistakes, a kind of chaos and confusion grows. Most people try to get away from the confusion or deny it. He said, “return to the confusion and be at home in the chaos. By doing this you will start to see different patterns starting to emerge, thru seeing these different patterns you will also think in different patterns and thus evolve the creative process in yourself.  So dont get discouraged next time your work is not chosen, or you find you have misread your clients wishes, Failure is a part of doing and creating, and you should not be punished for it, nor should you torture yourself over it! But rather understand that you are one step closer to coming up with something truly creative and great!