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Failure is an option

The Two Failures That Shaped How I Work With Clients

We don’t often like to talk about failure. It feels uncomfortable, even a little embarrassing. But in my experience, failure has been one of the most powerful teachers in my career, and it continues to shape how I serve clients today at Cedar Rock Consulting.

Let me share two early stories from my time working with Autodesk Inventor that taught me lessons I still carry into every engagement.  Trust me when I say these are two of MANY failure stories I can share.  Yet from each failure, I've walked away learning something.  

Failure One: Solving the Wrong Problem

When I was 27, I built what I thought was the ultimate demo dataset for Autodesk Inventor. It showcased a laser design; complex, elegant, and polished.  I even worked out the gotchya spots, and the ever loved quick exit feature at the time!  

I delivered the demo confidently to a government client. The models looked sharp, the workflows were smooth, and I felt like I had nailed it.

Then the client said something I’ll never forget:

“That was a great demo. But… we don’t design lasers.”

Their work had nothing to do with optics; they needed wire, cable, and routed systems tools because they designed fluid controls.

The demo was impressive, but it didn’t matter. I had created a solution to the wrong problem.

Lesson learned: even a brilliant technical solution fails if it isn’t aligned with the client’s real challenges.

Failure Two: Solving Only the Technical Problem

Determined not to repeat that mistake, I swung the pendulum hard the other way for my next demo.

This time, I asked detailed questions, dug into their workflows, and listened carefully. Then I built their actual product in Inventor, part to assembly, exploded view, and full documentation.

The room was silent. These engineers were stunned; what normally took them two weeks in 2D, I had just accomplished in a little over an hour.

I thought I had crushed it.

Then the manager spoke up:

“Thanks, but we’ll stick with what we know in 2D.”

I had shown them efficiency, but not adoptability. I proved the tool’s power, but I hadn’t helped them see how they could personally unlearn old habits, master new workflows, and adapt their team to the change.

Lesson learned: solving the technical challenge isn’t enough; you also have to solve the human challenge.

Why These Failures Still Matter

Those two experiences were humbling, but invaluable. They taught me that success with clients requires more than technical knowledge. It requires balance:

  • Listening deeply, not just for features but for pain points, culture, and readiness.
  • Bridging the gap between “this is possible” and “this is practical for us.”
  • Driving adoption, not just acceleration.

At Cedar Rock Consulting, these lessons are foundational. Whether we’re helping a startup refine its business strategy, training a team on Autodesk tools, or guiding a construction firm through digital transformation, our approach is built on more than just technical expertise.

We help clients find clarity in their challenges, build strategies that align with their goals, and execute in ways their teams can actually adopt and sustain.

Final Thought

Failure doesn’t define you, it refines you.  Translation: if you're not f'ing something up, you're not learning!  

Those early demos didn’t close deals, but they taught me lessons that continue to pay dividends for my clients decades later.

That’s why at Cedar Rock Consulting, we embrace the messy process of learning, failing, and improving. Because real growth, for individuals, teams, and organizations, comes not from avoiding failure, but from leveraging it to get better.

If your team is wrestling with how to adopt new tools, workflows, or strategies, let’s talk. We’ll help you not only see what’s possible, but also chart a path to make it practical.

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