You’re not alone: inglorious WTF moments shared
December started with a bang and an irreverent look at life, work, and everything in between in our F*CK UP and networking event.
F*CK UP nights are becoming a global phenomenon and on 1st December we elected to host our own in celebration of mistakes, fumbles, WTF moments, and those occasions where you see your career going into free-fall in front of your very eyes.
You know the kind of thing… viruses distributed to the entire company, internal emails going to clients, lapses in judgement. Those moments that are so toe-curlingly awful you wonder if you’ll ever recover.
Hosted by AWUK co-Chairs Louise Hussey and Beth Parker, it was great to see so many new faces as 69 women (including 8 from Scanline VFX – thank you ladies) got together on Zoom to share their experiences and talk about ways to get something positive from f*ck ups and failures.
Dara McGarry
The evening kicked off with three courageous speakers, Dara McGarry, Operations Manager, DNEG Feature Animation, Sue Lyster, Executive in Charge, ILM London and Sarah Fell, Director of Original Series, EMEA Kids for WarnerMedia, who kindly agreed to talk about their most inglorious moments.
We learned that failure and mistakes are a part of creativity, of aiming high and in some cases taking risks. Their ‘mistakes’ and failures had taught them important lessons about themselves, other people, and how after making a mistake they sought to channel that experience into something new and more constructive. And, that this didn’t necessarily happen overnight but came with time and a willingness to learn and grow.
Topics of discussion ranged from imposter syndrome and how to deal with big personalities to exam failure, lack of confidence to voice opinions, and an acknowledgement that even some of the best careers have not been planned.
What was said about the event:
This is my first time at one of these events and it’s been really insightful. Thank you so much everyone! 🙂
Thank you!!! It was SO MUCH FUN!
Thanks for being so frank and honest everyone!
Once you admit it you can all get on with solving the problem 🙂
Thank you everyone, lovely to speak to everyone in my breakout groups, and thanks Dara, Sue and Sarah for sharing your stories <3
Admitting a mistake allows you to regroup and reassess, to move forward.
Can definitely relate to the feeling of pinning your worth to your academic achievements, and how the bad grades tend to stay in your memory a while longer. Really helps to hear that story, thank you!
Everyone is so afraid of f*cking up that no one stops the f*ck up!
Thank you all so much for sharing your experiences, stories and tips! 🙂
Thanks to all 3 speakers. 100% agree – trust your gut (always)!
Whether you find yourself f*cking up once or multiple times, know that f*ck ups happen to everyone, it’s part of the journey. Remind yourself that this moment is just a moment, and it does not represent all your endeavours now or in the future.
Failure is an important part of your growth and developing resilience. Don’t be afraid to fail. Michelle Obama.
