Painted on the walls of one of the world's most successful companies is a motto that may surprise some: "Done is better than perfect."
Experts say the message in Facebook's Silicon Valley headquarters holds an important lesson for the company's employees: it is OK to make mistakes.
"Companies want people who are creative. [They] want innovation. [They] want to be at the forefront," says Kevin Abdulrahman, a leadership expert who spoke about creativity at the Rotary Club of Dubai this month.
"But some companies are not creating the environment for creativity and innovation," he adds.
Businesses that do create the right kind of setting take an interesting approach to employee errors.
When an engineer at Facebook makes a mistake, the person is not fired or ridiculed. "They say 'OK good stuff; let's fix the bug and get on with it'," says Mr Abdulrahman.
The approach encourages employees to be more daring. Allowing for mistakes is the single biggest step any company can take to encourage creativity and innovation, according to Mr Abdulrahman.
"How can your people try things out if they're worried about putting their neck out on the line because they're going to get fired for the first mistake they make?" he says. "Failure is a must."
This does not mean that making the same mistake repeatedly is acceptable, he warns. But people who do not make mistakes are not necessarily progressing, says Panos Manolopoulos, the vice president for Europe, the Middle East and Africa at Stanton Chase International.
"Development is based on making mistakes," he says.
Appreciation is another way to improve creativity, according to Mr Abdulrahman.
He says he knows of a woman who worked for a Fortune 500 company in the Emirates and at the outset was so excited about the work she was doing that she did not mind putting in long hours. But when Mr Abdulrahman met her six months into her role, her workload and hours had remained the same but her attitude had turned negative.
What had happened?
She said her manager had changed and did not appreciate her — and she quit because she felt undervalued.
"Three years down the track, that company has called her to say 'would you like a job with us?' And she said 'no thank you, I'm happy where I am and I feel appreciated'," he adds.
Other companies use money to encourage employee creativity and innovation. But after a while, money no longer motivates peopleas effectively as in the beginning, says Mr Abdulrahman.
"We know of far too many professionals who have switched jobs for even less pay just because they feel they can have a sense of ownership and they can be part of something, that their efforts will be seen or counted," he says.
Many human-resources professionals and recruitment agents say they are concerned about finding talent in the future.
"But are we creating the environment to bring out the talent we have and also attract talent?" says Mr Abdulrahman. "If you are a talented professional, you want to work in place where you feel you can let loose."
Facebook and Google are just a couple of organisations that excel at encouraging employee creativity.
"You can just look at the companies that have the buzz where everyone [says] 'I would love to work there'. They are obviously doing something right," he adds.
gduncan@thenational.ae
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
Emergency
Director: Kangana Ranaut
Stars: Kangana Ranaut, Anupam Kher, Shreyas Talpade, Milind Soman, Mahima Chaudhry
Rating: 2/5
The Sand Castle
Director: Matty Brown
Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea
Rating: 2.5/5
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Guide to intelligent investing
Investing success often hinges on discipline and perspective. As markets fluctuate, remember these guiding principles:
- Stay invested: Time in the market, not timing the market, is critical to long-term gains.
- Rational thinking: Breathe and avoid emotional decision-making; let logic and planning guide your actions.
- Strategic patience: Understand why you’re investing and allow time for your strategies to unfold.
If you go...
Etihad Airways flies from Abu Dhabi to Kuala Lumpur, from about Dh3,600. Air Asia currently flies from Kuala Lumpur to Terengganu, with Berjaya Hotels & Resorts planning to launch direct chartered flights to Redang Island in the near future. Rooms at The Taaras Beach and Spa Resort start from 680RM (Dh597).
'Ashkal'
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How to come clean about financial infidelity
- Be honest and transparent: It is always better to own up than be found out. Tell your partner everything they want to know. Show remorse. Inform them of the extent of the situation so they know what they are dealing with.
- Work on yourself: Be honest with yourself and your partner and figure out why you did it. Don’t be ashamed to ask for professional help.
- Give it time: Like any breach of trust, it requires time to rebuild. So be consistent, communicate often and be patient with your partner and yourself.
- Discuss your financial situation regularly: Ensure your spouse is involved in financial matters and decisions. Your ability to consistently follow through with what you say you are going to do when it comes to money can make all the difference in your partner’s willingness to trust you again.
- Work on a plan to resolve the problem together: If there is a lot of debt, for example, create a budget and financial plan together and ensure your partner is fully informed, involved and supported.
Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
How to avoid crypto fraud
- Use unique usernames and passwords while enabling multi-factor authentication.
- Use an offline private key, a physical device that requires manual activation, whenever you access your wallet.
- Avoid suspicious social media ads promoting fraudulent schemes.
- Only invest in crypto projects that you fully understand.
- Critically assess whether a project’s promises or returns seem too good to be true.
- Only use reputable platforms that have a track record of strong regulatory compliance.
- Store funds in hardware wallets as opposed to online exchanges.
Business Insights
- Canada and Mexico are significant energy suppliers to the US, providing the majority of oil and natural gas imports
- The introduction of tariffs could hinder the US's clean energy initiatives by raising input costs for materials like nickel
- US domestic suppliers might benefit from higher prices, but overall oil consumption is expected to decrease due to elevated costs
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding