How often do we pause to take stock at the completion of a project? To reflect on the process, the people and product. To search for lessons to learn. And then embed those lessons in the next project.
How often do we change?
Making time to identify, solve and implement opportunities for continual, incremental improvement is critical if we want to try and keep pace with the world. And it's even more critical if we're seeking to make a difference, to deliver something new, to do something better than the status quo. To do more than meet spec, we need to challenge and improve the specification itself.
This is not a case of trial and error. We do this by design. We do this on purpose. We do this because we know we've never nailed it. Because there's always more to learn.
Trying is necessary, because otherwise we'll just talk.
But reflection is necessary, because otherwise we're wasting our try.