Charles Pépin is a philosopher and novelist, whose essays have been translated in several languages across the world. He's the author of In the Clutch of Beauty (french ed., 2013), The Virtues of Failure (french. ed., 2016), and more recently Uh-oh Plato. A Philosopher's Guide to Surviving in the Workplace (with the cartoonist Jul, Europe Comics, 2018).
Are you sometimes ashamed of your past mistakes? Remember that the greatest creators endured terrible setbacks. In his book The Virtues of Failure, the French philosopher Charles Pépin goes over some of history’s greatest “losers”, from Thomas Edison to Steve Jobs. Here are a few of his most inspiring examples.
Thomas Edison: trial and error
Before he invented the electric light bulb, Thomas Edison tried out thousands of unsuccessful models. But through these mistakes he gradually mastered the laws of nature, which made him one of the world’s greatest inventors.
‘I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that don’t work’
– Thomas Edison
Charles Pépin's take
“Truth is the historical rectification of a long error”, according to the philosopher Gaston Bachelard. Researchers know this: it’s crucial to accept the sanction of reality in order to unlock knowledge. So when will this scientific culture be applied to our schools and companies?
Steve Jobs: a lesson in humility
In 1980, Steve Jobs was flushed by success. Apple had just achieved a billion-dollar turnover! But his arrogance was ultimately costly: lacking in team spirit, blinded to the failure of the Macintosh on the American market, he ended up being sacked by his own company. He would later be taken on again – but this time he had learned from his mistakes, and went on to launch hugely successful products, such as the Mac and the iPhone.
…‘Getting fired from Apple was the best thing that could have e
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