Failure Chronicles - Reshma Saujani
From Political Defeat to Coding a Braver Future
Reshma Saujani is now celebrated as the founder of Girls Who Code and Moms First, but her journey started with a very public failure. In 2010, Saujani – then a lawyer with political aspirations – ran for U.S. Congress in New York’s 12th District against a popular incumbent. “Every pollster told me, ‘You can’t possibly win this race,’” she recalls. She ran anyway, raising funds from big names like Jack Dorsey and John Legend. The result: She Lost. In a very public way. Coming from risk-averse immigrant parents, this very public defeat was devastating: “for me to fall short so publicly – well, it sucked, but it made me get over my fear.” - She Said in an interview for the newyorker.
Crucially, campaigning in schools during that race, Reshma noticed gender disparity in computer classes – which planted a seed. In 2012, just two years after her loss, she pivoted from politics to launch Girls Who Code, a nonprofit to teach teen girls programming. Saujani often says that if she hadn’t lost that election, Girls Who Code might never exist. Her mission was informed by her own realization that girls are often raised to play it safe, avoid failure, and strive for perfection. “They didn’t encourage adventurousness, especially in their daughter,” she says of her parents’ mindset.
Her big takeaway from failing in politics: “young women should be rewarded for bravery, not perfection… Don’t worry about getting a hundred on the test; just start messing around… Trial and error. That’s how you learn.”
This philosophy became the backbone of Girls Who Code’s programs, where girls build projects and even celebrate failures as learning moments.Girls Who Code has since taught 500,000+ girls across all 50 states, and Saujani became a leading voice in closing the gender tech gap. She wrote a bestseller, Brave, Not Perfect, and gave a popular TED Talk urging girls to embrace failure. In 2019, after reaching a nationwide scale, Reshma stepped down as CEO of Girls Who Code to focus on a new initiative supporting working moms with Moms First. But her impact persists: the organization has grown a pipeline of young women entering engineering and CS majors, directly tackling the “fear of imperfection” that often holds girls back.
Saujani’s personal narrative of failure is now a key part of her public speaking: she often begins speeches with her 2010 loss to illustrate that
failure is OK – it can even be transformative
Lessons & Outcomes:
Saujani’s story shows how setbacks can clarify your mission. Losing an election forced her to confront a lifelong fear of failure and re-evaluate what she truly wanted to achieve. The result was discovering her passion for girls’ education in tech. A key lesson is to find meaning in failure: Reshma turned her political defeat into a rallying cry to teach girls bravery. By openly sharing her failure story, she gives others permission to fail and persist.
Another lesson is that skills and success can come from non-linear paths – Saujani had no background in coding, yet she ended up leading a major tech-education movement because she wasn’t afraid to learn and start something new.
In her own words, “Failure is not the opposite of success; it’s part of success.”
Her journey from the halls of Congress (campaign trail) to the classrooms of Girls Who Code exemplifies that failing fast and boldly can lead to finding one’s authentic purpose.
As you navigate the storm of a shifting corporate landscape—driven by the rapid rise of AI and compounded by political and economic uncertainty—remember that setbacks are not roadblocks. They are often the very steps that shape your path to long-term success.
If we can be of service to help you prepare for your next challenge do not hesitate to reach out.
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