“There is no secret to success. It is the result of preparation, hard work, and learning from failure” – Colin Powell
Here is a practical way to learn. Fail and fail quickly.
However, in most machine shops there are two rules: Don’t crash the CNC machine (That’s a good one) and don’t come and ask for another endmill Do you know the cost of that 12mm endmill!?! *(Insert angrily Boss name here.)
The problem is the way we think about failure. For centuries. Errors of all kinds have been considering embarrassing. It is why children don’t dare to put their hand up in the class to answer questions (how embarrassing to risk getting it wrong.) But we know better. Taking calculated chances will always lead down the road of winning.
As business leaders, coaches, and professionals, we have to change this idea about failure. We should encourage and praise each other for trying, experimenting in an attempt to resolve problems.
How are you ever going to know if you can run that part faster without pushing the limits? You are a true professional, right? Just as professional in your trade running CNC machines as a Formula One team pushing to win the next race.
So, if you one day are standing in front of one of my CNC machines; feel free to turn that feedrate up a little and take a bigger cut. Even if this is risking breaking the endmill, and denting the sheet metal as pieces bounce around. Because in the end, we will learn from our failures and we will succeed.