Most projects fail.

Most projects fail.

But there’s a simple technique to give yours a fighting chance.

It’s not a to-do list. It’s not a fancy tool. It’s not a 12-step system.
It’s a single question that flips the way you think.
Here’s how it works:

It’s called a “premortem.”

You’ve heard of a postmortem what went wrong after a project dies.

A premortem asks: What if we ran that analysis now?

Before anything dies. Before the first misstep.

Before failure sets in.

The premortem comes from psychologist Gary Klein.
Here’s how to run one:

→ Gather your team. → Imagine it’s 2 years in the future. → The project has completely failed. → Ask: What went wrong?

No sugarcoating. No happy talk.

Start listing the causes of failure.

Budget misfire? Wrong team? Lack of buy-in? Scope creep? Missed deadlines?
You’ll be shocked how quickly people identify risks—once they feel safe predicting failure.
Why this works:
It defeats irrational optimism. • It turns hindsight into foresight. • It makes risk visible. • It aligns the team before chaos hits.

Because the best time to fix a problem… is before it happens.

Pre-mortems don’t require special skills.

Just a shift in mindset: Don’t assume success. Assume failure—and reverse-engineer your way out.
Ask: What will future-you wish you had done?
Then… do that now.
I run a premortem for every big project I take on.
Writing a book? Premortem. Launching a podcast? Premortem. Planning an event? Premortem.

It never guarantees success—but it always makes success more likely.

Summary: The Premortem Playbook

→ Imagine future failure. → List the causes. → Turn those risks into action steps. → Adjust your plan today.
It’s one of the most underrated tools in your productivity toolkit.
Try it before your next project.
You won’t regret it.