Fantastic Failures: Consumers Celebrate Missed Goals

Published 05 February 2024

Author
Emilia Morano-Williams
2 min read

As people redefine achievement – a topic explored in The New High Achievers – they’re reassessing their relationship with failure. Spurred on by new books and festivals, these consumers are treating failure as a rite of passage on the road towards success, a habit that also presents significant opportunities for brand engagement.

  • By the Book: New books teach people how to reimagine failure as a growth opportunity. Published in January 2023, Failosophy for Teens by British journalist Elizabeth Day acts as a handbook for when plans get derailed. Right Kind of Wrong (September 2023) by American professor Amy Edmondson offers science-backed insights into how missteps can stimulate growth. And On Giving Up (January 2024) by British psychoanalyst Adam Phillips takes a philosophical approach to concepts like sacrifice.

  • A Reason to Celebrate: In June 2023, Dutch organisation Instituut voor Faalkunde partnered with Utrecht University to host Faal Festival, a day-long event designed to teach students how to celebrate failure, deal with it positively and laugh at it.

    Similarly, South Korean science and technology institute Kaist hosted a Failure Week. Students could address their failures in a comedy show or as part of a photography contest and attend seminars to learn healthy ways for coping with setbacks.

    Meanwhile, American high school students are throwing college rejection parties as historically high college application numbers correlate with ever-lower acceptance rates.

  • The Significance: Humans may have a negativity bias, but people who stay positive when confronted with a slip-up are more likely to stick with their goals. Brands can use this to their advantage. By helping consumers reconceptualise their failures around a specific topic, brands can motivate them to pursue goals that intersect with specific products or services. Consider how your brand can encourage a growth mindset with science-backed strategies (rather than general optimism).