Here’s the story.
This is image is from the Oatmeal, part of a series about the state of the Internet today (hilarious stuff, check it out).
Amongst others, it includes a fake screen for when Tumblr is down, along the lines of the notorious Twitter Fail Whale.
Here’s the caption that went with it.
If you’re going to go down, you might as well blame it on an imaginary animal like Twitter did with their infamous Fail Whale. I’ve taken the liberty of creating this animal for you. Please use it. Please oh please – The Oatmeal.
Earlier today, here’s what @oatmeal tweeted.
I don’t know if it’s true. I really hope it is – for that would be quite the stellar move from Tumblr!
It would show they know how to fail with style.
HERE’S WHAT EPIC FAILING IS ABOUT.
Most people fail, and try to sweep it under the rug. They scramble to try and fix things before anyone notices, which invariably someone does. They go on the defensive, offer all sorts of justifications for what went wrong, deny responsibility. They pretend nothing much just happened and “apologize for any inconvenience they may have caused”. Meaning, “I don’t really care, and won’t even acknowledge there was a problem”. Whatever.
Others fail, and own it. This means recognizing mistakes immediately, and it sends others the message that you care what they think. Don’t be delusional: when you fail, people will notice. You might as well show that you too, noticed, and know that they know. And what says it better than a trio of TumblBeasts?
Failure is actually one of the best opportunities to project what you are about. Note that I’m not talking about not failing, because people who never do, just don’t exist. Everybody fails, it’s just a matter of how you deal with it. Sure, anyone can shine when they’re at the top. But smart people see dropping the ball as an opportunity to pick it up on a rebound, and show everyone what they are truly made of. Do this right and you will turn the story from criticism (“how they screwed up”) into support (“how they are fixing it”).
Finally if you’re going to fail, please, oh please, don’t take yourself too seriously. Let’s face it, there are very few moments in life when taking oneself seriously is appropriate; failing is not one of them. When you fail and show a sense of humor, not only do you defuse the situation, you show a level of self awareness that others will respect; after all, someone will make fun of you… it might as well be you.
