Afterburn: Failure is Fuel
Turning business failure into extraordinary success through the power of afterburn.
The Afterburn Effect in Business
Jet Engine Afterburn
Afterburn (or afterburning) is an incredibly powerful technique used by jet engines to generate extraordinary thrust. After the normal combustion process in a jet engine, additional fuel is injected directly into the exhaust stream. The fuel ignites and creates a dramatic burst of additional power, increasing engine thrust dramatically. MASSIVE ENERGY SURGE.
Business Afterburn
When I was going through a really tough time in business turning around a company unexpectedly, I wanted to quit so many times. The entire time I knew my personal guarantee was sure to get pulled in, there was no way I was going to be able to recover the company to pay off the $3M bank loan. As I was wrapping my head around saving the company and exiting to my operator, a vivid image of an aircraft popped into mind — because i came from the airline industry.
The Power of Afterburn in Business
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Face the Challenge
Knowing that I was looking at death in its eyes, there was a new sense of purpose and energy that powered me. No way in hell was I going to fail. And that permeated every cell in my body.
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Ignite the Afterburn
Ultimately this afterburn worked — I turned around the company, restructured the debt, and exited the company to someone who was well-positioned to lead it through the next chapter.
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Propel Forward
And I moved on to leading a startup (and excelling), launching my own advisory firm, and building my own media company.
Reframing Failure in Business
Data, Not Shame
Failure in business isn't the end. It's actually the most brutal, beautiful classroom you'll ever experience. Most people see failure as this dark, shameful thing — trust me, I've been there. But successful entrepreneurs know it's just data. It's information. It's the universe giving you feedback about what doesn't work so you can get closer to what might.
The Reset Button
Imagine failure like a massive reset button. Everything you thought you knew gets challenged. Your assumptions crumble. Your ego takes a beating. But underneath all that destruction? That's where real learning happens.
The First Fall
The first time you fail, it feels like the world is ending. Just like your first break up. Your dreams evaporate. The financial hit is real. The emotional toll? Devastating. You question everything: your judgment, your capabilities, your entire identity.
Failure: The Prerequisite for Success
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The Secret
But here's the secret most people don't understand: Failure is actually a prerequisite for success. Every major entrepreneur has a graveyard of failed attempts behind them. Those failures aren't mistakes. They're tuition payments for the most expensive education you'll ever receive.
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Famous Failures
Steve Jobs got fired from Apple. Sara Blakely was selling fax machines before creating Spanx. Airbnb was rejected by every investor before becoming a billion-dollar company. Failure isn't a stop sign. It's a detour.
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Lessons Learned
What most people miss is that failure teaches you things success never could: resilience, humility, strategy, EQ, and the thin line between unhealthy attachment and healthy commitment.
The Entrepreneur's Journey Through Failure
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Survive
The entrepreneurs who survive aren't the ones who never fail.
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Learn
They're the ones who fail, learn, adapt, and keep moving.
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Adapt
Failure becomes a skill. You learn to metabolize disappointment, to turn pain into perspective.
The Spiritual Dimension of Business Failure
Identity
There's a spiritual dimension to business failure that most people overlook. It's not just about money or strategy. It's about identity. Who are you when everything falls apart? What remains when the external markers of success disappear?
Core Values
Real failure strips you down to your core. It reveals your true motivations. Are you in this for ego? For money? Or are you genuinely committed to solving a problem, creating value, making a difference?
Hope
The most dangerous failure isn't losing money. It's losing hope. It's becoming so afraid of failing again that you stop trying. That's the real death. Not the failure itself, but the decision to stop believing in your potential.
The True Mark of an Entrepreneur
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Dimensions of Investment
Financially, emotionally, spiritually – failure is an investment. The returns aren't immediate. They're profound.
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True Mark
Want to know the real mark of an entrepreneur? It's not how they succeed. It's how they fail.
Embrace failure as a powerful tool for growth and transformation in your entrepreneurial journey. Remember, it's not about avoiding failure, but about how you respond to it that defines your success.