Recovering from project setbacks

Setbacks are a normal part of the path to success. Unless your role is to serve as a mindless cog in a wheel of predictable work, you will encounter setbacks – many of them – throughout your career. Even the biggest superstars at work experience impediments.
Some setbacks are small, having a minimum impact on your ability to move forward. Others can make you feel like the world is crumbling. Most fall somewhere in between. Regardless of the setback, there are techniques that can help you shed the disappointment, prop yourself up and move forward with enthusiasm.
How to recover from project setback

• Acknowledge it. Own it. Feel it.

It’s OK to feel the negative emotions that come with the setback. In fact, it is essential. Pretending you aren’t disappointed, frustrated or angry won’t make it go away. Acknowledge how you feel, but steer clear from blaming yourself or others. Take the time you need to process. For some setbacks, you will need more than just a brief pause to recover. Acting in haste may lead you to choices you soon regret, so resist the temptation to immediately send that blunt email or turn in your resignation.

• Change your mindset.

Setbacks are actually progressing in disguise. Think back to the most powerful things you learned in life, and I’ll bet many of those enlightenments are connected to a setback. In fact, you can likely connect a lot of your success and confidence to the growth that came from your most challenging experiences. Of course, hindsight makes those setbacks seem inconsequential – but they likely felt a lot heavier at the time. Remind yourself that the aftermath is temporary and will lead to valuable outcomes.

•  Strategize.

 Devise a plan that will minimize the impact of the setback and get you back into the fast lane after your temporary breakdown. This step can also involve others. Seek feedback and advice from trusted colleagues and mentors for ways to get moving again. Look at resources on the web and pose questions to relevant LinkedIn groups. Get the information you need and put together a plan. 

• Learn. 

Once you’re back on the right track, pause to take some time to learn from this setback. True learning is devoid of judging or blaming. Ask yourself what you gained and how you can prevent the problem from happening again. Some of my executive coaching clients keep a learning journal where they record everything they have taken away from the small and large challenges they encounter on a daily basis. Valuable tools like these remind you of the temporary nature of setbacks – and your perceptual ability to push through them.
 
 

Written by Adejumoke Akinrele