Keep a graveyard folder for ideas that failed

Not every tool idea works out, and that's fine. I keep a folder just for the ones that didn't, along with a short note on why, instead of quietly deleting them and forgetting the lesson.

A graveyard folder turns a failed attempt into something useful later. Six months from now, when a similar idea comes up, you can check whether you already tried it and why it fell apart, instead of walking into the same dead end twice. It also takes the sting out of an idea not working, since the attempt still earned you something worth keeping.

Try this today: create one folder labeled for ideas that didn't pan out, move your most recent failed attempt into it, and write a single sentence about why it didn't work.

• what you tried
• why it didn't work
• what you'd change if you tried again