Fail Up: 20 Lessons on Building Success from Failure

by Tavis Smiley

“Failure is an inevitable part of the human journey,” says award-winning television and radio broadcaster and New York Times best-selling author Tavis Smiley. Smiley steps from behind the curtain of success to share intimate stories of his missteps, misdeeds, and often highly publicized miscalculations in Fail Up: 20 Lessons On Building Success From Failure. These instances of perceived “failures” were, in fact, “lessons” that shaped the principles and practices that now guide his life. Readers will find a kinship in Smiley’s humanness that inspires, informs, and reminds us of our ability to “fail up” in the face of life’s inevitable setbacks. The year-long celebration of Smiley’s 20th year anniversary in broadcasting will feature the Fail Up book tour.

Genres: Nonfiction, Self Help, Leadership, Business

288 pages, Hardcover

First published May 1, 2011

About the author

Tavis Smiley is an American talk show host and author. Smiley was born in Gulfport, Mississippi, and grew up in Bunker Hill, Indiana. After attending Indiana University, he worked during the late 1980s as an aide to Tom Bradley, the mayor of Los Angeles.
Smiley became a radio commentator in 1991 and, starting in 1996, he hosted the talk show BET Talk (later renamed BET Tonight with Tavis Smiley) on Black Entertainment Television (BET). After Smiley sold an exclusive interview of Sara Jane Olson to ABC News in 2001, BET declined to renew his contract that year. Smiley then began hosting The Tavis Smiley Show on National Public Radio (NPR) (2002–04) and hosted Tavis Smiley on the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) on weekdays and The Tavis Smiley Show on Public Radio International (PRI) from 2004 until 2017.
Smiley had an employment dispute with PBS in December 2017 which resulted in his suing PBS for wrongful termination. Smiley is Founder and Chief Executive Officer of SmileyAudioMedia, Inc. headquartered in Los Angeles. Since June 2021 he has served as Chief Visionary Officer for his radio station, KBLA Talk 1580.

Reviews

[Camy · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF @20%

This book was not doing what the title purported.

There were no failures. There were just bloody moral lessons: be humble, don't cheat et al.

*sigh* and because I paid attention only to the title and not to the author...that author, BET Tavis, ugh, if I had known...I was not prepared for all the preaching. Just loads of Christian crap and lots of pontificating about being Black in America.

At least I borrowed this from the library.

[s_evan · Rating 5 out of 5]

couldn't have said it better than my dear friend Lauren who read this book and I saw her reccomendation on here: "Tavis Smiley is a force to be reckoned with, and a triple threat - author, public broadcaster, and television commentator. After a grant disaster, his book reminded me of how success is built from failure, as well as the socioeconomic and racial forces that can impact success. The book is composed of a series of anecdotes and excellent quotes for lessons featured in each title, like, "Even when you're justified, remain dignified." Fail up I will!" I'll add that I agree with some of the other comments about the author's tone which made things feel a little too perfect and contrary to his direction to be humble, but still, a new favorite, as I will and have reflected on his stories - that he learned from, that I learned from, and that I could identify with in some way and so doubly learn from his insight.

[Meredith Allard · Rating 4 out of 5]

I watch Tavis every night on PBS. I think he is intelligent, thoughtful, and insightful. I bought his book based on the title alone, quite frankly. Now that I'm in a place where I am putting myself out there, so to speak, the fear of failure is never far. What if I don't do something right? What if I make bad choices? What if everything just goes wrong? Tavis is someone I respect, and he's certainly been successful. Reading about his rights, and his wrongs, helps someone like me think, "You know what? Even if things don't work out exactly as I hoped, I can learn and grow." It's an important lesson everyone needs to learn, especially in this day and age where for some reason people don't like to admit that they make mistakes. I certainly make mistakes, and Tavis does too, but we can still become better people in the end.

[Teri Bryant · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was OK. I have definitely thought about it in the weeks since finishing the book, so actually I guess it was pretty good. Despite Smiley's humble childhood, it seemed like many of his lessons came from a weird perspective of wealth and privilege, which is odd considering his social activism. This isn't necessarily bad, it just made it difficult to relate to the lessons learned while enjoying his enormous success.

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tavis Smiley is a force to be reckoned with, and a triple threat - author, public broadcaster, and television commentator. After a grant disaster, his book reminded me of how success is built from failure, as well as the socioeconomic and racial forces that can impact success. The book is composed of a series of anecdotes and excellent quotes for lessons featured in each title, like, "Even when you're justified, remain dignified." Fail up I will!

[Rinku · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a keeper book. Lots of lessons will need to read several times to digest it.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a quick read on lessons Tavis Smiley has learned along the way. He wrote the book in 2011 at his 20-year anniversary in broadcasting, both radio and television. These are not necessarily all the lessons or even the most important ones - just the failures he encountered along the way and what he learned from them.

I watch Smiley's show on PBS as it is one of the few places one can go to hear and see the art of conversation still practiced well. He is a Dick Cavett for our modern times., conversing with politicians, authors, entertainers, and academics. His show almost always makes me think, and I often will go get a book from the library when it's mentioned on his show.

I recommend this book as it is important to be reminded that there can be no success without failure.

[Adrienna · Rating 2 out of 5]

So far, I am not liking this book as much as his other books I've read in the past. He speaks early on about "staying humble or stumble" and will see how this book helps one rise to the occasion from our failures to success.

"...when you reach a certain level of success, the favors are never equal" (page 37).
"Everybody needs somebody, and every somebody should help someone who's less fortunate and less connected" (page 39).

He adds that everyone wants a hook up (which I call freebies) and the easy way in. Yet, I know that it takes others help to get us where we are...or will be.

Enjoyed the "microphone mishaps" because I also do Internet Talk Radio and ministry radio and soon another network (most of the time it is pre-recorded, or scripted to avoid such issues on live showcases). We do slip and mindful of what I write on social groups as well since this can be easily misconstrued or misinterpreted as ill-will.

[Raychelle Muhammad · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fail Up really drives the message home that failure is one of the most important parts of the journey to success. Being persistent, learning from your mistakes, being reflective, and staying true to yourself at any costs are all critical to making progress. Tavis shares poignant and honest anecdotes about his life that we can all relate to. There were times as I read this book that I cringed at some of his "teachable moments". But, I learned how valuable those moments can be if you work to redeem yourself. My elementary school principal told me that life is 10% of what you make it and 90% of how you take it. That quote taught me that perception and attitude map out every man's journey. And this quote is teaching me to never ever give up:

"Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better." ~Samuel Beckett

Well done.

[Monique · Rating 5 out of 5]

So let me be honest, I really haven't listened or watched Tavis since he talked about not supporting President Barack Obama during the 2008 election. But I had this book on my to be read list and I try to honor the list. I requested it from the library and started reading. I had my mind made up not to like it but as I read all I could do was agree with what Tavis was saying.

Now for the review...the stories of failure are awe-inspiring. The way that Tavis opens up and shares how he learned by failing brought me to a new understanding of life. The life lessons offered by others allow you to see them as real people. It goes to show that you have to know both sides of the story before making conclusions. Outstanding read with tons of leadership lessons.

[Mickey · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is an interesting mixture of personal stories, pertinent history, and honest reflection. Before checking this book out of the library, I'd never heard of Tavis Smiley before, so my attention to the first few lessons were dulled by trying to figure out exactly who he was. (I didn't want to look him up, because I was afraid of spoilers.) Smiley offers his readers the benefit of his experiences with failure. I could see this book being an appropriate present for college graduation. While Smiley strongly identifies himself as black and most of his examples are black, the lessons and reflections are universal and appeal to a wide audience. There is much practical advice in here about being prepared and learning how to deal with the idea that you are not in charge. Great book.

[Herschel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Travis Smiley addresses simmillar of feelings I have had once as a wayward youth.

A great deal of insight in relating to people, behaviors that limit our success and thoughts that inevitable lead use to failure!

I do not have my notes with me so I cannot give you a direct qoute from the book however I can share with you something I took away from reading "Fail Up".This applies directly to myself and current circumstance, "Dont quit before the miracle happens" and because I might be forced to go into an direction uncomfortable to me it is ultimately God who is in control. God's grace has in store for me things I can not begin to imagine. I can either bury my Talent or put it to use!

[Lynecia · Rating 4 out of 5]

The oft cited exhortation, "learn from your mistakes" is taken to heart by Tavis Smiley in this small tome brimming with big nuggets of wisdom. He takes 20 examples of times when he used seeming failures in his life to get to the next level. Any one can learn from each and every one of them - and it was a pleasure getting to know more about Tavis and his journey to being one of the top broadcasters/political/social figures in the business today.

[Tameeka Mo'Nique C'Mor Kitt'e · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you read another book before reading this don't ask the question of why am I stagnated and can't catch up....This book is more than inspirational, motivational and factually it's something WE ALL can learn from and FAIL ^...By the time you finish this book you have moved 10 steps ahead of your mess and onto your success

[Edy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book! I had never heard of Tavis Smiley before. Although I have learned that some of life's most important lessons are learned as a result of mistakes or failures, Smiley uses his own failures to teach important life lessons in a systematic way. His writing is engaging and provocative. This book is well worth the time to read.

[sleeps9hours · Rating 1 out of 5]

I love Tavis’s radio show, and I liked his autobiography, but unfortunately this book repeats a lot of it. Describes 20 ways Tavis has failed and made the best of it. Preachy and a little self-aggrandizing, though he often says how modest and humble he is.

[Rosana · Rating 4 out of 5]

have always enjoyed listening to his show..we tend to learn more from the times we mess up and so, Tavis Smiley lists the 20 biggest failures that he's learned from...some really great and humbling examples of both failure and redemption..

[Vallory · Rating 4 out of 5]

No matter what your dream is, use this book as one that teaches that success can come from failure. Recognizing those teachable moments in our lives can help us become better at what we want to do. Recommend for those who want to give up on their dream.

[E. · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is an inspiring book that showcases his mistakes and how he propagated success.

[Aliyah · Rating 4 out of 5]

So far so good. There are many lessons and quotes to live by, one of the most important is about giving second chances especially to young people.

[Marian · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was a good book.

[Tiffiney Gambill · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cannot wait to read it again - I need to build off his lessons learned!

[Missy Hancock · Rating 4 out of 5]

...really, really encouraging. A lot of great insight.

[Toryono Green · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wasn't a strong Tavis Smiley fan until I read this book. You learn so much about others (and yourself) when viewed in the light of mistakes made. Great read.

[Church Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great Book!!!!!!!

[Marcus Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

a good combination of life lessons, anecdotes and inherent wisdom from colleagues that follows the career of one over 20 years.

[Nichelle Sifontes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very uplifting!

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

A different side of Tavis. Good, solid advice.

[Sarah]

Heard the author interviewed on NPR May 4, 2011. Maybe I have more to hope for after all.

[Anino · Rating 5 out of 5]

An Inspirational book that's well worth the time checking out...