“I’ve conducted the following thought experiment with audiences around the world: “Take a look at the Blameworthy–Praiseworthy spectrum: Which of the potential causes of failure do you consider blameworthy?” Answers to this question vary. Some will say only sabotage can be considered blameworthy. Others will chime in that inattention should be as well. Pushing back on that, others immediately recognize that people might have been put in difficult situations where becoming distracted was not their fault. It doesn’t matter to me where you draw the line. What matters is that you draw it and then contemplate your answer to the next question: “What percent of the failures in your organization or family can be considered blameworthy?” I’ve found that most people, when they think about it carefully, arrive at a small number: perhaps, 1 to 2 percent. I then ask the most important question: “How many of these failures are treated as blameworthy by those who matter in your organization or life?” Here, people will say (after a rueful pause or a laugh) 70 percent to 90 percent. Or, sometimes, “All of them!” The unfortunate consequence of this gap between a rational assessment of fault and the spontaneous response of those in charge is that failures—in our lives, households, and workplaces—are too often hidden. This is one of the ways we lose access to failure’s lessons.”