Success v Failure

Why the Triumph of all the Talents is where it's at...

Recent marathoning efforts, a household currently navigating both SATs and GCSEs, and things I’m wrestling with at work have all, this week, led me to ponder the same fundamental thing.

What is success?

The answer to which, I think, is inevitably “it depends”.

It depends on the definition you set in the first place. It depends on your expectations against that. And it depends on your comparators or benchmarks. To start with a marathoning example…

If your goal was speed then there was very clearly one winner last weekend and it was Sebastian Sawe, who cruised across the line in London as the first human to legally run under two hours, without even looking remotely tired or bothered about it. (I bet he didn’t have to wash his only set of kit last minute on Saturday morning though having realised it was in a smelly, crumpled heap on the floor and hadn’t made the laundry).

However, if your definition of success was winning, then spare a thought for Yomif Kejelcha. On his marathon debut no less, he also finished in under two hours. But eleven seconds behind Sawe. A runner-up. A loser. FML, that is devastating.🤦‍♀️

But if your definition of success was raising money for charity then both Seb and Yomif are objectively rubbish. I don’t think they held a single cake sale, primary school face painting afternoon or charity auction to raise a penny of the sponsorship that saw the 2026 London Marathon raise over £87.5m in a day. Also a new world record.

By way of a single example, the fabulous Manny Singh not only walked from Wolverhampton to London and then ran the Marathon without any sleep, he also raised over £60k (and over £400k from his various challenges) which I think is hands-down incredible.

So, if your definition of success is sheer grit, determination and resilience, or the overcoming of incredible personal barriers then there were more winners in London last weekend than you could ever even count.

Here’s Claire Roberts who finished the marathon after 12 hours and 16 minutes, raising £2,000 for the Samaritans who saved her life when she wanted to end it, and for whom she now volunteers.

And this one I can barely even write, but Gareth, a paramedic with over twenty years service, was running for Age UK in memory of his nan. He suffered a cardiac arrest at mile 25 and is still in intensive care a week later. You can donate to Gareth and his family here Help Gareth ❤️

To me, every one of these people is a complete hero. As are the countless charities, volunteers, friends and families who supported them off the couch and to the start line. Who on earth could say that any one of them isn’t a success, that they are some kind of failure? Only a f*cking idiot. (Nike “walkers tolerated” campaign managers, please take note).

Same at work. If your definition of great leadership is subject matter expertise, high IQ, attention to detail and climbing the ladder upwards to the boardroom, then that’s cool, you do you…but along the way you will miss all the amazing people who are generalists, off the scale EQ, creatives and those don’t need or want the weight of the big badge and the fiduciary responsibility to be, or to feel, successful or happy. Which seems a shame.

Same in life. If it’s money, seniority and fame you measure, you’ll miss the millions of incredibly talented “ordinary” people who make the world go round and make a difference in our communities every day of the week. Or those who fight mental or physical ill-health every morning to even make it out of bed and make a contribution.

And don’t get me started on school and telling year six or year eleven kids that they’ve “failed” because they were unable or unwilling to meet the demands of a one-dimensional educational and examination system that was designed during the Industrial Revolution and hasn’t changed (that much) since.

So this Sunday, as the sun miraculously shines on a UK bank holiday weekend, I am raising a glass and celebrating success in all its forms. That’s real inclusion. A world that celebrates success in many dimensions, and that truly values the triumph of all the talents. Whatever you’ve achieved, or are still heading towards, I salute you.🙌

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