Turning Setbacks into Strengths
It’s a story everyone knows: A young person starts with very little, faces a series of challenges, and somehow finds their way through. Who comes to mind when you think of a “rags to riches” story? What challenges did they face that made you empathize? And what helped them overcome?
What makes stories like these memorable is not just the success at the end. It’s the way each obstacle shapes the person along the way.
Setbacks are unavoidable. Plans fail. Ideas fall short. Unexpected challenges throw things off course. As a leader, you cannot always prevent these moments, but you can choose how to respond. That choice defines your leadership far more than the setback itself.
People with a fixed mindset often see failure as an endpoint. Leaders with a growth mindset treat it as information. They pause, learn what they can, and move forward with greater clarity. Over time, this mindset builds resilience not only in individuals but across teams. Let’s explore how you can strengthen that mindset and help others do the same.
“Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced.”
Self-Assessment: Turning Setbacks into Strengths
Please take a few moments to answer the following self-reflection questions. Where can you identify opportunities for personal growth in your leadership?
When something doesn’t go as planned, how do I typically respond in the moment?
Do I take time to reflect on setbacks, or do I try to move past them quickly?
When I experience failure, do I focus more on what went wrong or on what I can learn?
How often do I adjust my approach after something hasn’t worked?
Do I talk openly about setbacks with my team, or do I keep those experiences to myself?
How do I respond when others on my team make mistakes or experience setbacks?
Have I created an environment where learning from failure is supported?
What recent challenge helped me grow as a leader, and how did I respond to it?
Remember, this self-assessment is just a starting point for understanding Change as a leader. It's essential to reflect on your responses and actively work on areas where improvement is needed.
Setbacks are part of every leadership journey. Sometimes they’re minor course corrections. Other times, they disrupt momentum, confidence, or team alignment. In either case, what matters most is how leaders respond.
Resilient leaders don’t rush past failure. They pause to assess, ask hard questions, and look for patterns. They take ownership without assigning blame. Most importantly, they stay engaged—using setbacks not as a reason to pull back, but as a chance to reset and move forward more strategically.
This mindset can be difficult to maintain, especially in fast-paced or high-pressure environments. Setbacks can trigger frustration, disappointment, or even self-doubt. These emotions are normal, but they should not determine the outcome. Growth begins when leaders acknowledge what went wrong, identify what can be learned, and use that insight to make smarter choices going forward.
One practical approach for doing this is the 3 R’s of Failure:
Reflect: Step back and look at what happened. What factors contributed to the outcome, and what role did you play? Focus on clarity, not blame.
Reframe: Instead of focusing on what failed, ask, "What did this teach me?" or "How can this make me better?"
Rebound: Be proactive, make a plan to move forward, and apply what was learned to avoid repeating mistakes.
The 3 R’s are not just tools for personal reflection. They also shape how leaders talk about setbacks, give feedback, and set the tone for how teams respond when things don’t go as planned. The story below shows what it can look like to apply these steps in a real-world setting.
“Do the best you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better.”
A Change in the Field
Casey, a site supervisor, had been working closely with project managers to improve scheduling between trades on a high-priority job. To help avoid delays, Casey introduced a new communication process that required each trade lead to submit daily updates by mid-afternoon instead of the following morning.
The goal was to improve responsiveness and reduce last-minute conflicts. But within a week, the new process began to backfire. Updates were inconsistent. Teams were unclear on expectations. Some felt blindsided by changes in timing, and tension began to rise between crews.
Casey realized that while the idea made sense on paper, it had been rolled out too quickly and without enough input from the people using it.
Rather than push forward defensively, Casey stepped back and applied the 3 R’s:
Reflect: What did I overlook? Who was impacted, and how? Casey looked at what contributed to the confusion. The issue wasn’t the idea, but how it was introduced. There had been no time built in for feedback, and the shift felt abrupt to teams already balancing tight deadlines.
Reframe: What is this telling me about how I lead change? How can I bring people with me next time? Instead of seeing the resistance as failure, Casey saw it as feedback. The process itself wasn’t wrong, but the rollout needed to change. With this in mind, Casey reframed the moment as a leadership opportunity, not a personal mistake.
Rebound: What changes need to happen, and how do I make sure people feel heard moving forward? Casey called a short meeting with team leads, owned the misstep, and asked for their input. Together, they adjusted the timing to something more workable and assigned a point person to help coordinate updates. The shift improved communication and renewed trust.
For Casey, this wasn’t just about fixing a mistake. It was about building a stronger foundation moving forward. What about you? Think back to a recent situation that didn’t go as planned. If you were to apply the 3 R’s, what might you do differently next time?
Turning setbacks into strengths takes more than periodic self-reflection; it takes practice, especially for when pressure is high. Great leaders don’t wait for a crisis to build these skills. They treat reflection, communication, and course correction as everyday habits, not one-time responses.
Here are some strategies you can start using now:
Use the 3 R’s Approach: When something goes wrong, pause. Reflect on what happened, reframe the situation to focus on learning, and rebound by taking clear next steps. Why did this happen? What can I learn from this? How can I move forward?
Separate Setbacks from Self-Worth: Mistakes don’t define who you are. They’re part of growth, not proof that you aren’t capable.
Follow Reflection with Real Change: Insight only matters if it shifts what you do. Look at what you’ve learned and take one specific action to improve your approach moving forward.
Talk About the Tough Moments: When you speak openly about setbacks, others feel safe to do the same. Model openness by sharing what didn’t go well and how you handled it. This encourages your team to treat setbacks as learning moments, not silent failures.
Celebrate Growth Over Perfection: Celebrate effort and adjustment, not just final results. Progress is what builds persistence.
Look for Patterns: If similar issues keep showing up, there may be a blind spot. Take a step back, look for themes, and make a plan to shift the cycle.
Setbacks are part of the job. They happen to every leader, no matter how skilled or experienced. But what matters most is how you respond. Do you shut down, or do you slow down and learn? Do you pull back, or do you step forward with more clarity?
In this Change module, you’ve explored how to stay steady in the face of uncertainty, how to stretch outside your comfort zone, and how to turn failure into forward motion. These are the moments that shape your leadership.
At MSS, a Growth Mindset isn’t something you either have or you don’t; it is something you practice daily. It means choosing to see potential in tough moments and helping others do the same. Keep showing up with curiosity. Keep building habits that help you grow. And most of all, keep leading in ways that support learning and growth for both you and your team.
Reflection Questions:
How do I want people on my team to feel after something does not go as planned, and am I truly leading in a way that supports that?
When I face a setback, what story do I tell myself about what happened? How does that story shape my next step?
What patterns do I notice in how I respond to failure or disappointment, and how might I shift one of them?
In what ways have I grown as a leader because of a past challenge, and how can I share that growth with others?
To push your understanding of Turning Setbacks into Strengths to the next level, explore these valuable resources. They’ll help expand your skills and provide essential tools for building strong leadership.
Just one link this time, and we highly recommend watching it:
How to Turn Setbacks into Success (15:36)
Amy Shoenthal, TED Talk