Achieving Success: Fail, Learn, and Build

I have shared a little of my personal life in this blog over last year or so. I'm married, with two small children, and have some things to share about personal finance and careers. However, an event this week is prompting me to diverge from the planned blog on retirement to talk about another topic. You see, I grew up just outside of Milwaukee, Wisconsin.... AKA the home of your 2021 NBA Champion Milwaukee Bucks! Growing up in Milwaukee and loving basketball, I am passionate about my hometown team. The fact that they haven't won a championship in my lifetime makes it great on its own. What makes it truly special is how they did it - working through failure, finding the right people, and making tough decisions - that really inspires me. For the next couple of weeks, I'm going to diverge a little from my standard personal finance and career advice, and focus on the broader topic of success. How can you succeed in life - in your career, in your financial goals, or even in enjoyment? I will use this Milwaukee Bucks team as a jumping-off point to illustrate how to achieve success. This week, I will focus on how failure is a crucial part of the process.

I like that they recycled the same dude over and over - reduce and reuse!

Navigating The Lows

The Bucks may have won the championship this year, but building to this point has been at least eight years in the making. In fact, the story may even go back further than that! I first started as a Bucks fan starting in the early 90's. The team floundered through most of the decade, even trading away future Hall-Of-Famer Dirk Nowitzki for a tractor trailer (RIP). It was painful. After some competitive years in the late 90's and early 2000's, including a deep playoff run to the Eastern Conference Finals, the Bucks were average at best. Too good to get better draft pick positioning the next year, and not desirable enough to attract top free agents to sign.

The Bucks were quickly becoming NBA purgatory, and the City of Milwaukee tuned out. Home game tickets being marketed as opportunities to see other team's players - Allen Iverson, Kobe Bryant, Kevin Garnett, or just about anyone who would make an All-Star team. The team lacked identity. I vividly recall just starting my career and had a work trip to Wausau, WI (central part of the state). The Bucks were in the final stretch of a failed 30-52 season. Being the devoted (and bored) fan on a weeknight, I went to a local sports bar to eat dinner and watch the game. Seeing dozens of televisions with various baseball games playing, I asked the bartender if he had any with the Bucks game. He looked at me as if I asked him where the Chicago Bears cheering section was during a Packers game! He questioned why I would want to watch such a terrible team. Yes, even in their home state, the Bucks weren't worthy of a single television in a sports bar. The long-time owner of the team, former U.S. Senator Herb Kohl, was getting up there in age. It would be political suicide to sell the team if it were to move, but grumblings of the Bucks moving to Seattle, Las Vegas, or another larger market persisted. As much as I love my birthplace, given the apathy and irrelevance, could you blame the team for wanting to move? Things needed to change.

Trending Upward

Just as the team seemed destined to depart, some hints of positive change fell into place in 2013. The squad had sneaked into the playoffs with a losing record, facing a formidable foe in the Miami Heat, featuring the man who took his talents to South Beach himself. On April 18th, down 0-2 in the best-of-seven series, the always-confident Brandon Jennings stated in infamy: "Bucks in 6 always, that’s for the culture." The Heat would proceed to sweep the Bucks and win the championship, but that phrase would become a part of the lexicon. Fast forward two months. Bucks GM John Hammond selects a wiry, but raw, 18-year-old from Greece with the 15th pick in the 2013 NBA draft. Just 34 days after that, an injured 2nd-year player was an afterthought in a trade for point guard Brandon Knight; Milwaukee was only big enough for one Brandon, so Jennings was sent packing in the deal. However, Mr. Knight and the other two new additions contributed little to a team that finished with a league-worst 15-67 record. Despite the horrible record, the Bucks managed to miss out on the NBA Draft Lottery's top pick, getting 2nd overall. I recall stating at the time "The Bucks are even bad at losing!". Just a year later, a new ownership group purchased the struggling franchise under Sen. Kohl's condition that the team remain in Milwaukee. Despite the poor record, the foundation for change was being laid.

Over the next few years, the roster was tweaked, the beautiful new Fiserv Forum was built, and things started to feel different. The culture was changing. That 18-year-old kid grew taller, added muscle, and refined his skill set to show a glimmer of what would enable Giannis Antetokounmpo to become a two-time NBA MVP. The 2nd year trade throw-in better known as Khris Middleton honed his silky-smoother scoring ability, propelling his All-Star status. Coach and GM were upgraded. Deep playoff runs became perennial, but these two athletes lacked the right team around them to get to the next level. This time around, players were hungry to come to Milwaukee to play with Giannis. They found that missing piece in an over-looked, under-rated gritty point guard. Now, with a Big 3 and key contributors bringing energy, hustle, and heart to their squad, it was finally their time. The Milwaukee Bucks broke through and became the 2021 NBA Champions. Champagne was had, Chick-Fil-A was ordered, and the team became a beacon of hope for small-market franchises.

Rebounding From Failure

I am convinced their success is directly tied to their failures. In fact, I highly doubt the Bucks would have ever reached an NBA championship without that failure (and perhaps some luck). Looking back, it would have been really easy to continue down the middling path - keep allowing homegrown talent leave in free agency, don't build a new arena, and continue to use opposing teams' stars to draw fans. Frankly, Milwaukee is not a top destination for NBA players - it's cold and snowy during most of the season, the nightlife can't compete with more glamorous cities, and it didn't have the superstar talent yet that others wanted to play with. But that last reason changed when Giannis developed into a top-notch player. With Khris already in the fold, it was a matter of building around them - finding the right players to complement their skills. The Bucks GM (Jon Horst) and coach (Mike Budenholzer) tinkered with adding the right players. The biggest addition took the most risk - trading several draft picks and players to acquire Jrue Holiday. The All-Star point guard was well-respected in league circles, but far from a household name. What he lacked in flash, he brought with intensity, effort, and humility.

Success is not about avoid failure; it's about having the courage to fail and grow from it. Most of those who do well in their careers, for example, could probably tell you about a time or two where they lost a major client, bombed a presentation, or even lost their job. It's not as simple as just getting past it. Simply ignoring a bad outcome gives you no reference point for how to do better the next time. Dig into your failure and understand why it happened! For example, if your presentation bombs, did you know your materials? Did you practice the presentation? Was it not appropriate content for the audience? Understanding opportunities for improvement are the foundation of succeeding in the future.

I know this was a lot of content - perhaps about a subject for which you don't care about. I understand that my enthusiasm for a small-market basketball team people started caring about in the last week is not for everyone. But I do think there is so much to gain from observing those who succeed, and my basketball team just happened to be the best example. Next week, I will continue this theme with a focus on character.